The Empress of Gristol
by CamperMan501
Summary: "Thanks. I still haven't gotten this Hoshidan manners lark." She raised her hand to the newcomer. "My name is Emily."
1. Prologue: What of Corrin?

**R/L/A/N**

 **Few things to bear in mind:**

 **1) This was written in 2016 before Dishonoured 2 came out. How I write Emily and Corvo is based on the first game.**

 **2) I have taken my own approach to the world of Fates. How the world works is stuff of my invention.**

 **3) OCs will be present, but in supporting roles only.**

 **4) This story will be divided into acts. After Act 1, the story will play out differently to the games.**

 **5) At the end of some chapters, I'll put a YouTube link to a song. I'm not going copy and paste lyrics in their entirety, but music is important to this tale.**

 **And of course, I own nothing. Fire Emblem is owned by Nintendo and Dishonoured is owned by Bethesda.**

The Empress of Gristol (Act 1)

Act 1: Conquest, Birthright or Dishonour?

Prologue: What of Corrin?

The sun's rays were kissing the green glades of Hoshidan grass as twilight marked the sky; the sun dipping over the emerald forest. A clear, crystal lake was sparkling, and the winds were gently caressing its surface; a perfect picture of tranquillity.

One could say it was ruined by the approaching figure, walking alone across the grassy fields to the edge of the forest. Barefooted, she turned onto the dock; the sun glancing off her sleek armour of black and white. Reaching the wooden structure's end, she sat down of the edge and allowed her feet to tickle the lake. The dirt and gravel from her feet drifted away as she looked out across the water, a forlorn spell griping her mind as she pondered her life so far.

Images flashed through her mind: A looming fortress set against a pitch-black sky, a withered tree that stood alone amongst blooming cherry blossoms and a large, dead whale that floated in a white mist…

Without even thinking about it, she looked down at her right hand. Upon which was a weird mark that was etched into her skin. As she gazed upon it, more broken pictures clouded her mind. A stone tower, a golden cat, a painted hound, and that masked man…

The lady sighed and grasped her head like she wanted to tear it open, her nails digging into her scalp as if she was trying to open a large tome that was glued shut. Her fingers grip slackened and her hands fell to her side in defeat. This melancholy didn't last long, as the dark-haired woman decided to ease her mind from its weight. She straightened up, her toes still touching the water, and looked out across the lake as she readied her diaphragm.

"What will we do with a drunken whaler, what will we do with a drunken whaler…"

Her voice, while not of an angel, was fair and in tune as she sung the shanty that haunted her dreams.

"Stuff him in a sack and throw him over, stuff him in a sack and throw him over…" A smile grew as she sang those morbid lines which gave her a twisted comfort that only she would appreciate. "…Early in the morning."

"Feed him to the hungry rats for dinner…" As her dark melody continued to echo across the still water, a mist suddenly descended upon the solitary lady, as if her song called them up to ruin the twilight scenery.

She didn't seem to notice as her eyes were now closed, ignorant of the wisps of mist that surrounded her. Images could be seen in the haze; visions of rats, hoard of rats, scurrying through the air like a plague of locusts. Tall, mechanical legs appeared from above and matched across the lake. Horrible, mutated plants that squirmed like veins that hung limply from human skin.

A carnival of horror and metal that hid in the mist. All the while the woman sang her melody; "Slit his throat with a rusty cleaver, early in the morning."

"Way hay, and up she rises…"

The creatures in the mist began to slow their movement as a new visage appeared amongst them. A tall, hooded man that wore a metallic, skull like mask with misshapen glass eyes. And unlike the other illusions of the mist, his drab coat and sword were as solid as a painting.

"Way hay, and up she rises…"

This man began to slowly walk towards the singer, his head tilted to one side. The rat swarm was in his path, but he walked through it disrupting the apparition without breaking pace or his own image.

"Way hay, and up she rises…"

As he closed in, the stranger raised his hand and began to reach for the dark-haired woman.

"...Early in the morning…"

"Excuse me!"

The singer's eyes jolted open. She blinked for a second before turning to the source of the voice and saw a lady in a white dress. Upon seeing the visitor, the singer raised herself off the edge of the dock and bowed as low as she could.

"Sorry about that," she bleated out nervously. She straitened up and looked behind her to see where the sun was in the sky. It was lower than before, but it was still above the forest and its rays still touched the tranquil lake.

Turning back, she bowed again, "Really, I'm sorry. I thought I was out here alone."

The lady with long azure hair smiled softly, "It's all right. I was coming out here to sing as well. And please, there is no need to bow."

The awkwardness now gone, the dark-haired lady gave a sigh of relief, "Thanks. I still haven't gotten this Hoshidan manners lark." She raised her hand to the newcomer.

"My name is Emily."

 **"Drunken Sailor"** watch?v=urV8MIcLDFk


	2. Chapter 1: Reunion of Family (Act 1)

**I own nothing. Fire Emblem is owned by Nintendo and Dishonoured is owned by Bethesda.**

The Empress of Gristol: (Act 1)

Chapter 1: Reunion of Family

"Flora! Flora!"

The oak door swung open into the stone corridor, unleashing a frantic maid that bounded down the corridor like a scalded cat; yowling for her fellows with great anguish. She was about to skid around the corner until another maid, with light blue hair, beat her to it. As if she had been rehearsing for this exact moment, she grabbed the arm of the frantic, light brown-haired maid.

"Felecia, what wrong?"

"I-It's Lady Emily! She's gone!"

Flora's gaze sharpened at those words. Without hesitation, she released Felecia and the two servants charged towards their masters' room. Upon entering the large, well-furnished bedchambers, the twins scoured the room in a panicked fever, trying to discover a clue to their milady's disappearance.

"I can't find any sign of a struggle," said Flora in an anguished tone. "When was the last time you saw her?"

"I-I was guarding the door all night," said the brown-haired maid as she swung open the wardrobe doors. "Hey, that outfit she was working on! It's gone!" The light-blue haired twin was at her side in a flash. After a quick scan of the wardrobe, she turned to her sister with a serious look in her eye.

"Felecia, please tell me you didn't sleep on the job."

"No!" She retorted in an indigent manner. "I slept in all day yesterday so that I wouldn't fall asleep on the night watch. Nobody came in besides me when I gave her Jakob's tea. And I didn't spill it this time."

Speaking of the devil, a silver haired butler with black armoured gloves briskly walked into the room. "What has you done now, Felecia?" Asked the butler with no attempt at hiding his exasperation.

"I haven't done anything," said the now sulky maid. "Lady Emily has vanished!"

His brow furrowed for only a second before Jakob began sneering at the brunet. "I see. Lady Emily must have snuck out whilst you were asleep. She does love sneaking about—"

"—But I was awake all night! She couldn't have snuck away!"

"She is telling the truth." Jakob dark eyes turned to Flora, who spoke clearly and crisply in defence of her twin. "Felecia wouldn't lie, and she wouldn't be upset unless she thought Lady Emily was in danger."

At her words, Jakob's expression softened and was now alert. He went over to the room's window, which was open and rattling in the wind. "There's no way anyone can climb up or down this tower. Even Hoshidan ninja filth wouldn't have the stamina to cling onto the walls this high up."

At the mention of Hoshidan enemies, Felicia's face became taut with more worry. "Oh no! She's been kidnapped! What are we going to do!" Flora and Jakob bit their lips, the fear now affecting them. "I'll go and get Gunter! We need to find Lady Emily!"

United in purpose, the three servants drew their knives from their leg pouches and went to seek out their liege. The soldiers of the Northern Fortress were quickly mobilised and began searching every nook and cranny. The servants, led unwittily by the clumsy brunet, final found the head of the fortress' guard.

Gunter was an old man with grey hair and the face of veteran. He wore dark armour that was styled in the traditional Nohrian aesthetic; sleek yet sharp like black garnet. He was striding through the main oak door with an entourage behind him at the same time the three servants practically leapt down the marble stairs.

"Gunter! Gunter!" Cried Felecia. She was interrupted by the edge of the large rug she almost tripped over, hadn't Flora and Jakob caught her. "We need your help! Lady Emily is missing!"

The old soldier's eyes sharpened, but his demeanour remained composed. "Are you sure? Emily might just be sneaking around again…"

"I wish that were the case," replied Jakob. "But Felecia has sworn she couldn't have escaped through the door. We are searching the castle just in case, but Lady Emily usually reveals herself when we mobilize the guards, so we are assuming the worst…" Pain began visibly showing on the butler's face.

"Oh no! Emily is missing!?"

The three servants finally noticed the visitors Gunter had been escorting, and had sunk onto one knee for they were the royal children on Nohr. The one who had spoken was Elise, a petit teenager with blonde hair that was tied up into long, curly pig-tails and was dashed with streak of light purple. She wore a black dress with pink trimmings and bore a healing stave in her hand and a worried look on her face.

"Are you sure of this?"

"Absolutely certain, Lord Leo."

The youngest lord with straw-blonde hair raised his pointy, armoured fingers to his chin to ponder. He wore high, silk collar and black armour with gold trimmings and attached to his belt was a tome of dark magic.

"Oh, this will not do," cooed Camila, the eldest princess. Wearing a black crown that had cat like ears attached, the lady wafted away her long, purple hair with her own armour gloved hand. Wearing a similar armour to Leo, except with an opening for her chest with a belt strap crossing over it, Camila managed to hind her concern under a playful smile.

"No, it will not." This was uttered by the last and oldest sibling, Xander. He had mid long blonde hair and wore a crown similar to Camila's, though there were thorns where Camila's cat ears where. His armour of black and golden was graced with royal purple tunic with a cape that hung from his shoulders to his hips. His face was stern, though it really wasn't much of a change from the norm.

Gunter turned to the royal siblings, also bending down on one knee, and calmly said: "Do not worry, my liege. We will find her soon enough. She's probably still in her room and these louts just missed her."

"Hey!" Protested Felecia and Flora.

"This is serious, old man," spat Jakob in a bitter tone. "Flora searched the room, the only way out was through the window and it is a near impossible climb."

Elise gave a gasp. "What if ninjas took her away!" Tears began trickling out of her eyes at the idea. "No! We gotta save Emily!"

Leo looked down at his sister and pattered her on the shoulder. "Don't cry Elise. Gunter's right, she's probably just hiding really well this time."

Suddenly, a gloved hand appeared on both young royal's shoulders.

"BOO!"

Elise screamed in shock while Leo had the worst reaction. He jumped and turned at the same time, landing on his back heel. The hand that surprised him now gone, he fell backwards onto his ass which hit the stone floor with a resounding crash. Spluttering and cursing, his collar crumpled, he looked back up at the newcomer and glowered at her. "Very funny, Emily!"

The dark-haired royal gave her younger brother a mischievous grin. She would have extended a hand to help him up, but Elise had begun hitting Emily with her healing stave. "That was so mean, Emily!" She wailed with red, runny eyes. "You are such a meanie! We thought you were taken away from us…Waah!" She then dropped the stave and hugged her big sister really, really hard. She was then joined by Felecia, who was also crying.

Embarrassed, Emily patted her sister and servant on the head. "I'm sorry, you two. I just wanted to surprise you, Leo and the others."

"Well that wasn't very nice," sniffed Felecia.

"Yeah, it wasn't," huffed Elise. "And get off, you. This is my sister, my hug." Felecia retraced her arms and laughed sheepishly. The young girl, who wasn't really crying at this point, looked up and pouted, "You're gonna have to play with me for a really, really long time for me to forgive you."

Emily grinned. "Okay. I promise well play for as long as you want." The young princess squealed in delight and continued to hug the sneaky royal.

Camila laughed and smiled at her sisters. Leo was helped up by Gunter and was still glaring at his dark-haired sister. Xander was also staring intently, though there was a small smile that most mortals wouldn't be able to see. He cleared his throat and the two sisters released their embrace, though not with any haste.

"Would you care to explain how you manage to sneak past your retainers again, little sister?"

"Simple, really. I climbed down myself."

The eldest prince raised an eye brow while his younger brother just raised his voice in a disbelieving tone. "Impossible! There's no way you could have climbed down safely without falling."

A cocky smile and pose was her retort to that, along with a boast of, "I can climb back up again to show you if you want."

"Aw, aren't you adorable." Emily cockiness was quickly stifled by Camila, who took her turn to hug her younger sibling. "You must have been practicing for months to obtain the strength and stamina needed to do that."

"Yeah, I did," said the slightly embarrassed dark-haired girl.

Smiling, the elder sibling nuzzled her sister gently. "I'm so proud of you, my sweet, silly sister. You've done very well, but you must apologise to Leo. I think you might have hurt his poor feelings, and that won't do." Leo began to blush and mutter to himself.

She nodded and Camila released her, allowing her to face her little brother. "I'm really sorry, Leo. Heck…" She turned to her servants and head guard. "…I'm sorry for getting you all worried…again."

"No worries, milady," replied Jakob as he bowed to his mistress. "We are just glad that you safe." Flora and Felice both nodded while Gunter was just smiling wistfully. "Though I must ask; did Felecia actually keep guard or was she asleep?"

"I'm fairly certain that she fell asleep against the door."

"Lady Emily," protested Felecia with a red face; out of embracement or out of anger of Jakob's smug grin.

Seeing this, the dark-haired royal narrowed her eyes on her butler. "You're not one to talk, Jakob. You sleep against the door as well." His grin was wiped clean with that remark, and he got a well deserve jab in the arm from the brunet maid. Flora, who was seemingly free of this sin, giggled at her subordinate's antics.

It was now Gunter's turn to cough loudly. "If you are through acting like fools in front of our guests, go to the kitchens and prepare breakfast." He turned to said guests. "My liege, will the usual surfice." After many yes', and one large 'Yeah', he barked at the trio, "You heard them, now make it snappy."

The two maids and butler made their way in a graceful manner to their jobs. Gunter himself was about to go and tend to the royals' horses when Emily intervened. "Gunter, once you're done in the stables, do you mind going to my room to check on that bird I found in the stables the other day?" Nodding, he left the main hall and the grand oak doors closed behind him.

As the royal siblings of Nohr made their way to the dining hall, Camila fell into step with Emily. "Little sister, what was that bird you mentioned?"

"Well, a couple of days ago I was crafting leather at the stable work bench when I heard noises from the stables and found a bird of some kind. It was injured badly and I've been nursing it in my room for a while now. When I woke up this morning it was gone."

The purple haired lady wrapped an arm around her sister. "That is so like you, my little darling." She gave her a dotting kiss on the cheek. "Don't worry, the little bird probably got better and flew away, thanks to you."

"Hey, Emmy!" The little blonde was now tugging at her arm. "Where did you get those new clothes?" The dark-haired royal looked down at her dark blue coat that covered a set of leather armour. "I've never seen a coat like that before."

Her cocky smile was back again as she re-admired her clothes. "Made it myself. Been working on it for a couple of weeks along with some new armour."

"What's wrong with the royal armour Father made for you?" Chimed in Xander.

"It's not conducive for sneaking." She replied casually. "The only reason I used to manage to sneak around in my old armour was that I would go bare footed."

"Speaking of which," continued Xander in his commanding tone. "When will you finally starting wearing footwear? It is beyond ridiculous at this point."

"Ah, but remember, brother." Chipped in Leo with a smirk on his face. "Boots are too uncomfy for our sneaky sister."

"They are though." Pouted Emily. "I always feel like I'm going to trip over myself when I wear shoes."

The straw-haired mage laughed. "It's only thanks to the Devil's own luck that you haven't cut your foot open by now, sister. Who would have thought that the most skilled thief in all of Nohr can be thwarted by giving her some slippers to wear?"

"Leo, stop being mean to Emmy." Said Elise while trying to glare as hard as she could.

"It's all right, Elise. It doesn't take a skilled thief to steal from Leo." Cackling, she pulled out a tome and waggled it at her brother. "So tell me, Mr dark mage, what are you reading these days?"

The mage, flabbergasted, reached for his tome and grasped at thin air. Before he could demand anything of his sister, she held out the tome within grabbing distance and had dropped her smirk. Snatching if back, he resumed glaring at her before muttering. "If you must know, this is the scared tome Brynhildr. The second royal weapon that belongs to our family and only wielded by the most powerful of mages. And I, after a century without a wielder, have unlocked its secrets and can use its power for myself."

The dark-haired lady smiled, with no hint of jest or mischief, at her brother. "Congratulations, Leo. Father must be pleased as punch with you." He did not respond with wit or boast and only bit his lip. Emily quickly worked out what the issue was. Moving over to her brother, she gave him a one-armed hug as they walked into the dining hall. He did not respond or reject his sister, but the bitter look in his eyes refused to wane. Not wanting to push her luck, she released her brother and scanned the room for her servants.

Flora was stoking the fire whilst Jakob was laying down the plates. Felecia, meanwhile, was filling their set glasses with water and juice. There was no accident until she reached the final glass, where the brunet choked on the last hurdle by overfilling her lady's glass. Realising what she had done wrong, she began panicking and tried to quickly fix her mistake. If Jakob hadn't been in range to stop the maid from dropping the juice jug out of nerves the mess would have been greater.

Sighing, she motioned to her sibling to sit down as she patted her clumsy servant on the back. "Don't worry about it, Felecia. You go with Flora to prepare the weapons for training. Xander will want to train after breakfast." She nodded and went on her way, still slightly cress fallen.

As she took her seat next to Elise, Emily flashed a smile at her family. "So, besides Leo now being the most powerful mage in Nohr, what other exciting things have happened. This was met with a serious look from both Xander, Leo and even Camila while Elise lowered her eyes to her juice. The three exchanged a glance before Xander broke the news. "Do you remember Lady Valene?"

"Yes, she's Elise mother and one of Father's concubines." The dark-haired royal, as she uttered those words, worked it out with no trouble. Her mouth open in shock, she turned to her sister who was quietly drinking from her glass. After she put it down, Emily hugged her and whispered, "I'm so sorry…about your mother." The blonde didn't burst into tears as she gently hugged her older sister back. In fact, her face was blank and devoid of cheeriness nor sadness.

The silence was only broken when Leo spat on the ground. "You're lucky she gone. I can't wait for my mother to drop dead."

"Leo!" Snapped Xander. "How dare yo—"

"Don't deny it, Xander! Your mother was the Queen, not ours! Our mothers care nothing for us, we are only pawns to win favour with Father!"

"I know, but that does not mean—"

"She ignored Elise on her death bed! She tended to her until her dying breath, but all she did was try and curry some useless favour before she died!" Anger pulsing through him, he slammed his fist down on the table; spilling his drink all over the place.

"Leo, Xander! Please, control yourselves!" Camila stood up, starring down her brothers angrily. Leo was about to retort, but she cut him off firmly, saying, "Leo, I understand. I really do. But please…don't argue in front of Elise or Emily. I know that here we can speak our mind…but…" She trailed off, her gaze now mournfully on her youngest sibling.

There was quite once more as Emily continued to embrace her sister. The young one was still not crying, but her face remained neutral as thoughts known only to her stormed though her mind. The silence was deafening for everyone as they waited for the breakfast to be served.

"…Well, might as well break the news now…"

Elise's hand tightened as she looked up fearfully at her sister's words. The other three were quick to rise, Xander leading the scurry over to their mournful sister. "What news?"

Taking a deep breath, the dark-haired princess released her troubled sibling; who straightened up with genuine fear in her eyes. She pulled her left glove off and showed off the back of her hand. On it was a black mark that looked like a sword stabbing a spikey shell of some kind. There where random circles underneath the lines that made up the 'shell' and the hilt of the sword was a turnabout arrow with a dot in the middle. As all of her siblings gazed upon it, she tensed her hand and it began to glow a bright yellow.

All were bewildered, but Leo was the first to speak. "Sister, how did you get this mark?"

"I got it…in a dream."

"A dream," asked Xander sharply. "You can't have gotten a mark like that in a dream? Do you mean someone branded you while you slept?"

She shook her head. "No, I was given it while I was in the dream…" She began ruffling her own hair, as if she was trying to rack her brains. "I know it sounds silly, but I was in this weird and misty place. He called it the Void."

"Who did, darling?" Spoke Camila in a soft tone.

"He called himself the Outsider. I can't remember what he said exactly, but he gave me this brand and said my…my 'borrowed blood will fuel his mark's power'". Sighing again, she stood up with her marked hand raised. "Look, ever since that dream I have been able to do stuff like this."

Her mark glowed and suddenly Emily vanished before her siblings. Elise gasped while the other three spun their heads in all directions. Xander was the first to see that their sister had teleported across the room. The moment that confirmation was made, she reappeared in front of them with a troubled expression.

"How is that possible?" Blurted out Leo. "You need a tome or at least speak words to perform magic. He grabbed her hand and began examining the mark with feverish gusto. "And there is no Dragon Vein in this room. But that Outsider did mention 'borrowed blood' which could refer to our family's dragon blood…"

Xander and Camila both exchanged a bewildered look as they had nothing to say to the display. Composing themselves, Camila was the first to ask in her motherly tone; "When did this dream happen?"

"The first one happened about a month ago."

"The first one?"

As if talking about the dreams gave her a headache, she sat down; dragging her investigating brother with her. "I never saw the Outsider again, but I sometimes find myself back in the Void and I see some really random things." Suddenly she made a sound of frustration. "Look, I wake up with the mark from my dreams and its allowing me to perform magic with a wave of my hand. I don't know how it got there or…"

"Shh…" cooed the oldest princess as she gently caressed her sister's cheek. "It's all right, dear. We will sort this out together." Emily smiled back at her sister. The purple haired royal looked at Leo, who had finished his examination of the mark. "Do you recognise the symbol, Leo?"

"No," he replied pensively. "There's no family with this crest in Nohr, I know that for sure. And I have never heard of a magic crest giving a person with no magical experience the ability to perform magic. I have ideas of what topics to pursue, but it will take time." He then smiled/smirked at his dark-haired sibling, saying, "Chin up, sister, we'll sort this mess of yours out."

"Why are you such a jerk, Leo?"

All eyes turned to their youngest, who was trying to glare again but was not by any means intimidating. Realising this, she turned up her nose to Leo and folded her arms. "At least she can use magic without a stupid tome. I bet she can use all kinds of cool spells." Everyone had a smile on their face and they only grew when Elise dropped her folded arms and started giggling gently. It wasn't forced, it wasn't empty. It was just them, together.

Xander was the first to stop smiling, as he resumed his seat and crossed his fingers together. "I trust Leo to be able explain this mysterious seal. I will tell father when we return, but until then let us enjoy our time here." He looked towards the passageway at the back of the hall that leads to the kitchen. "Strange, I thought that your retainers would have brought us our food by now."

"Felecia probably spilt—"

Screams echoed around the hall, screams the brought the sibling to their feet. They came from the passageway, its owner running into the hall with a knife in her hand and blood on her apron. "Lady Emily," yelled Felecia as she ran towards the siblings. "He got Gunter and Flora! Jacob is—"

Without warning, all of the colour from the world was drained from their view. Felecia was now frozen in mid pose, her left foot raised off the ground. The juice drops that had been dripping off Leo's side of the table were also frozen, even the drop during mid splash. But they could still move, and they were reaching for their weapons and tools. Except for Emily, who had not brought a weapon with her.

Before she could make this fact known, the being that attacked her retainers slowly walked out of the passage. A chill struck her as her eyes gazed upon the assailants metallic and jagged skull mask; as if recalling nightmares from long ago.

Whilst Emily was struck with horror, Leo prepaid to strike the menace. His legendary tome flew from its hoister and into his outstretched hand. The tome opened and its pages began flipping as if the prince was reading it at high speeds, an orange aura and symbol etched ring surrounding him as the magic charged the air around him.

The mysterious assailant was about to reach Felecia, who was still frozen in time, before a pallaelagram appeared beneath his feet. From the symbol came vines and other sharp tree growth that tried to plunge itself into the assailant's chest. He barely managed to dodge, colliding shoulder first into the wall to avoid a tree branch piercing his lower side.

Instantaneously, colour returned to the world and the terrified maid continued to run and scream. "…holding him off! The other guards are all—" The maid cut herself off with a yelp after glancing behind her to see that the assailant had been right on her tail. She staggered past the royals and stood by her mistress, her knife at the ready in a poised stance.

Xander looked upon the intruder as if he was examining a cockroach; said bug now standing tall where Leo's spell had once been. "Speak, villain!" He barked. "Who sent you here?" The hooded man didn't speak, though the lenses of his glass eyes seemed to magnify upon the royal siblings.

"Probably another Hoshidan rat," cooed Camila in a low and venomous tone. "I'd wager he is after our precious little Emily. Isn't one theft of our siblings enough?" Her fingers around her giant, steel axe tightened like a vice.

The stranger glass eyes shifted in response, but not to the eldest princess. Emily felt the man's eyes fix on her unarmed person and more chills began spreading down her body. She side-stepped to Leo, who was still at the ready with his tome, and whispered, "Leo, I need to borrow your sword." She motioned to the iron blade's scabbard on her brother's belt.

He gave a sigh that was more amused than frustrated as he whispered, "Typical." He reached for his sword and at the same time the stranger drew his. With great speed, the man's crossbow was raised, and a bolt was already flying before the royals could react. The young prince had hand on his hilt as the projectile struck him right in the throat. Instantly his eyes rolled into the back of his skull and he collapsed; landing on the table with a resounding crash.

Elise screamed and ran to her brother's side, dropping her healing staff at the sight of her brother being slain. While Camila heisted out of horror, Xander charged in anger at the masked man. In his hand was a long, darkly coloured blade that had a red glow like the sky during a sunset; the legendary blade Siegfried. Roaring like a lion, he thrusted his blade at the stranger with all his might.

But the stranger's hand began to glow. As the edge of Xander's blade was about to pierce him, the stranger vanished in a cloud of smoke. Siegfried struck the stone wall. The high prince pulled it from the wall and turned around in time to see the stranger with a sword in hand. It was a fist that was planted in his stomach that winded the prince. Being head-butted by a metal masked face was the real pain the blinded him and staggered him backwards into the passageway.

Before the stranger could do more damage, Camila darted for him like a snake. It was nothing short of a miracle that he managed to deflect her blow as he turned around, though nothing could save him from the sharp kick she delivered him. The princess continued her assault on the masked man, even when he teleported behind her; their skirmish bringing them onto a table in the dining hall.

While the battle raged on, Elise shook her brother whilst real tears began dripping down her face. "No, Leo!" She sobbed as she shook him. "Wake up!"

Emily, though stunned and shocked, managed to see that her sister's request wasn't unfounded. Having gone straight to the wound, she found that the projectile had been a dart of some kind. Upon removing it, she noticed that her brother's chest was slowly rising and falling.

"Elise, it's all right," she assured softly. "He's just sleeping. He's still alive." More tears dribbled down the young princess face, but cheer was their cause instead of sorrow. With that piece of mind, Emily reached for Leo's sword to join her sister.

As she stood up, blade in hand, she heard her servant yell, "Lady Camila, incoming!" The dark-haired princess saw Felecia throwing her knife straight at the stranger. If not the another yellow glow, the dagger would have slipped past the eldest princess and pierced the hooded man's shoulder. Alas, colour was once again drained; leaving the knife three inches where it should be.

The stranger, in a clean motion, managed to elbow past the tall Camila and grabbed the thrown knife. He threw it back to the sender's leg and then allowed time to move on. The maid could never have imagined that her own knife would be now sticking out of her own leg. Howling in pain, she crumpled to the ground.

"Felecia!" Emily turned round to her sister. "Please, heal Felecia. I'll go help Camila."

As she said this, a scream of pain drew both their eyes to an another horror. Camila was writhing in the air as she flew like a stone into the dining hall wall. The sound of armour smacking stone was also laced with a crunch of bone. Camila slid down the wall in a heap, blood strumming from the back of her head.

Anger trumping her misery, Emily roared like her brother and charged the hooded man; the blight against her family. Jumping onto the table, she raised her sword in a crescent ark to cut across the stranger's back. But just like her brother, the man turned with inhuman speed and deflected her blow. But he did not follow up like last time. Instead he took a few steps back, knocking over plates and glasses as he did so.

The dark-haired princess stood her ground, taking up the stance that Xander had drilled into her head. She crossed her arm in front of her chest and straightened out her sword arm until it was pointer behind her; a stance that seemed open and inviting of danger to the untrained eye. "I don't know who you are…" growled the angry princess. "…but you will pay for hurting my family!"

As her eyes bristled with contempt of the hooded man, the stranger continued to step away from the princess. His glass eyes were seemingly fixed on her unarmed hand, the one that bore the mysterious mark. He didn't say anything, but you could tell that his stance had been softened. And Emily took full advantage of that.

With a quick glow, she blinked out of reality into the space before the stranger and slashed at his exposed chest. He managed to doge and raise his weapon, but unlike Camila and Xander he was seemingly unable to exchange blows as Emily swung from up high and low. Her form was sloppy as every swing left herself wide open, but she did not care. After a while, the stranger stopped dogging and managed to lock their blades together. Sparks flew as they engaged in the lock, eyes filled with rage burrowing into eyes made of glass.

Suddenly, the sound of gears wearing accompanied the act of the stranger's blade retracting into its own hilt. Surprised, Emily couldn't break from the lock and thus her blade was dragged down the retracting edge. Before it could cut down into the stranger, he grabbed the princess's sword arm and forced her to drop her blade. He then tripped her leg out from under her and she fell onto the wooden table. She tried to wrestle from the man's grip, but he placed his knee onto her other arm and held the other with an iron hold.

"Let me go!" She grunted as she tried to flail her legs. The man raised his free hand to his face, a single finger pressed against the mouth peace. She did not remain silent and only screamed even harder for her brother Xander. The stranger seemed to give a sigh, but it was slightly garbled and muffled. His hand then raised to his mask and his finger reached around its edges.

Emily didn't pause in her attempts as the man pulled the mask off his face. Not until the real eyes of jet black were staring down at her did she fall silent. For they were red and soaked with tears.

That was all she saw of the stranger, for he had outstayed his welcome. His eyes darted to the left, spying the knife that had been thrown by the healed Felicia. Once again, he stopped time with his mark and reached out for the knife once more. However, as he grabbed the handle, the man screamed in pain with the same garbled quality. For the knife had been empowered with frost, for its owner was a scion of the Ice Tribe, and it covered his marked hand like frozen water.

Staggering upright, colour returned to the world. Felicia, seeing that her plan had worked, jumped onto the table with a grace that you'd think be beyond her. But with battle afoot and her lady in danger, the brunet drew another knife and charged at the mask less stranger. With his marked hand damaged, he tried to doge the incoming knife strikes whilst putting back on his mask. That earned a slash to his other arm and more ice crawling across his armour.

The man, masked once more, let out a kick that did connect with the maid. However, it lacked the power to do more than just stagger her back for a few seconds. He tried to retreat, but a beam of black and red shot out from the passage and stuck his shoulder. Gargling in pain, he fell off the table as Xander strode back into the room; holding aloft the legendary Siegfried that was still crackling in energy. Just as he got back to his feet, his marked hand not free from its icy prison, Elise finished healing Camila and the axe-wielder was now on her feet; armed with a smile and a murderous glee.

The stranger, seeing that he was outmatched, took one last look at Emily; who was still lying on the table. His gaze lingered for a few seconds before he disappeared into the either.

Lying on her back, the dark-haired princess looked at the spot where the man had vanished; the man that still haunted her dreams. The sounds of Xander barking orders at faceless guards were muted along with the sounds of Camila calming a shaken Elise. Even the sound of her maid asking her if she was alright was already fading, along with the walls of the dining hall itself **.**

Mist poured into the princess' vision as the floor beneath began to rot away; pieces of it floating away into the depths of the Void. The table she lay on was exempt from this and new sounds began to fill her ears. Swords clashing, arrows cutting through the air and the same words over and over again.

"We're your family," said in many different and interlaying voices.

She closed her eyes and shook her head, trying to get the image of those jet black eyes out of her head.

"For no matter how hard you try; those eyes haunt you like an unwanted shadow that clings to you in the moonlight."

She did not flinch at the sound of the clear, odious voice that cut through the sounds of her dream. Even when the tall, dark haired man with sunken, lifeless eyes appeared before her amongst a cloud of oily vapour.

"It has been many long years since you have seen that man, since I graced you with my mark," spoke the Outsider in calm and ominous manner. "Many years stuck in the prison that you call a home. A prison that you stayed in like an obedient dog; clambering around like a trained monkey in a cage while you always yearn for more."

She did not reply to the Outsider. She had not the will to speak in this desolate place, the crushing vastness swallowing her strength to utter a word before this godly being. That did not stop the being from posing his question:

"Will you be able to cope with what is to come? For tomorrow, your siblings will arrive before dawn and will meet to test you one last time. From there you will leave your prison and journey along the roads fate has laid out for you." He smiled, an unnerving rarity for Emily. "Will your journey be as interesting as Corvo's? Well, we shall see…"

With that, the mist began to envelop her and the table she rested on disappeared. She fell silently into the void, her soul screaming in terror as she descended into nothingness.


	3. Chapter 2: Princess of Nohr (Act 1)

**I own nothing. Fire Emblem is owned by Nintendo and Dishonoured is owned by Bethesda.**

The Empress of Gristol: (Act 1)

Chapter 2: Princess of Nohr

"It's time to wake up, Lady Emily."

A tired groan was the response to Flora, though her words did open the princess' eye lids. She did not move anything else, until Felicia leaned over and shook her gently; shouting, "Hey, wake up, Lady Emily! Up and at 'em!"

Grunting, the princess raised her head off her red pillow to look at her trio of servants; noticing Gunter was also present. "Get lost." She hissed sleepily. "It's still dark outside."

"You've gotten up early than this, Princess," firmly stated the old solider. "You have practice today and Prince Xander shall not be kept waiting."

Jakob, standing at attention with an arm across his waist, followed up in his soothing tone that he only used for his mistress. "I have taken the liberty of readying both your armours, and, er, pounding out the dents." He smiled ruefully. "Your brother is a fearsome opponent, is he not?"

Emily let her head fall back on her pillow, pulling her red duvet up to her chin in mock defiance before releasing it in resignation. "Ugh. Fine." However, she stayed where she was for a few more seconds to savour the warmth of her sheets; muttering, "I'm getting up…as slowly as I can."

The light blue haired maid gave a playful smile. "Oh, we can help you with that. Felicia, would you please assist me?" She exchanged the same smile but with a twinkle of mischief in her eye.

"Sure thing!" The twins circled their mistress and leaned over to her. Both of them raised a hand to touch Emily's cheek in a gentle caress…before frost glowed around their fingers. The chilled fingertips could have given their mistress a severe cold burn if they wanted to. But the chill only causes the princess to flail and throw her sheets of the bed whilst squealing indignantly. "Alright! I'm awake! Totally awake now!"

The twins retracted their hands, but only Flora's smile grew wider. "That's how we dealt with slugabeds in the Ice Tribe."

Sighing, Emily dragged her legs off the bed until she sat on the edge with her hands on her knee. She might have quipped at her maids if the remnants of her dream had not still remained in her mind's eye. It didn't take much for her entourage to pick up on what was bothering her.

"Was it another Void dream, milady?" Asked Jakob tentatively.

"Yup, plus a memory and the Outsider to boot." She muttered in an attempt at frivolity.

"A memory and the Outsider!?" Exclaimed Felecia. "Isn't he that guy who gave you the mark in the first place?"

The princess nodded. "That's the one. He hasn't appeared since I received the mark and he came at the tail end of me reliving three years ago." Jakob and Flora gave grave looks, they themselves remembering that day and the quality of their service against the mysterious man.

Felicia, meanwhile, forced a peppy smile and grabbed her mistress by her unmarked hand. "Yeah, that was the day you climbed down the castle all by yourself! You were really cool and took on that masked menace and drove him out!"

Lady Emily smiled, ruefully. "What are you talking about? You were the one who kicked his ass, Felicia."

"Oh, I didn't do that much," she said while blushing; embarrassed by—in her mind—the undeserved compliment. "Xander was the one who ran him off. All I did was graze him…"

"Speaking of Xander," interjected Gunter with his typical sternness that rivalled the high prince. "It is high time you get dressed and meet him on the south tower roof. We can't keep him waiting." Emily nodded and stood up. Flora and Jakob took this as a sign to gather her armour while Flora began escorting her liege to her panelled dressing screen. As she disappeared behind the screen, Gunter made one last remark as he closed the bedroom's window. "And please walk to the tower this time, Lady Emily. No surprising sneak attacks this time, if you would be so kind."

"I was already planning to do just that," she replied with her restored gusto and mischief. "I've climbed the tower so many times now they won't be excepting me to come the normal way. I'll get the drop on them this time, its fool proof!"

Turns out it was not fool proof, for she had not counted on Leo to be there to blow her cover. The straw haired mage was certainly looking when he tapped her on the shoulder and loudly announced her presence. Even more so when he told her that her magic was banned from this practice session.

Emily would be peeved at her younger brother if she wasn't currently getting her arse served to her by Xander. It didn't help that he was on his armoured horse and wielding the scared blade Siegfried, though it explained why she was knocked down on her rear for the third time with her sword out of her hands.

"That's our sister for you," said Leo in his smuggest tone. "You won't beat the strongest knight in Nohr by sleeping all day, Emily. You can't rely on your light footsteps forever." At that moment, the princess resisted the tremendous urge to flip her brother off.

"Giving up so soon, Emily?" Xander voice contained more mockery, but the disappointment was clear and sharper than Leo's 'witty' remarks. "I except more of you. You are a princess of Nohr!" His words back by his grandiose domineer, he gestured to the sword on the ground. "Pick up your weapon and try again."

Gritting her teeth, she pushed herself up from the tiled roof. "Okay, Xander, just give me a bre—"

"We train like this so that we can defend ourselves from our enemies." He wasn't angry or loud when he spoke those words, but decisive. "Father has been tracking your progress. If you can't land a hit on me today…he may never permit you to leave the Northern Fortress. Ever."

The chill she felt was worse than the cold burn she had been given by her maids. "You know; I'm starting to wonder if our father is just insane rather than harsh." She spoke in jest, but her eyes began burning with concentration. Something that both her brothers saw.

"Motivated, are we?" Xander smiled, which was just a slight twitch of the lip these days, while Leo respectfully remained silent and gave the two fighters space. "Then use that fire to best me in battle, little Princess. But first…" The high prince raised his sword free hand up into the air and a glow appeared on the titled ground beneath him and his horse. Suddenly, a flaming fireball appeared in his hand; the flames licking his royal fingers. It then shot into the sky and came crashing down upon the ground directly in front of Emily; bursting into a visage of a burning dragon before flittering out of existence. The tarnished floor began to glow a bluish aura whilst a stunned princess gazed upon it.

"A dragon vein? There was a dragon vein up here the entire time!?"

"Yes, little sister," replied Xander. "You should have been able to sense it with your royal blood—"

"No, hold up! You mean for all the times you kicked me to the curb, we had to waste our healing staves and my retainers' time when we could have just used a dragon vein that was purposely placed here?"

"To be fair, sister," chimed in Leo. "Dragon Veins can appear in any material in our world and only us royalty can even realise they are there. But you have a good point. Why did you neglect this Dragon Vein for so long?"

Whatever bitter fruit Xander looked like he was swallowing, it helped serve to signal to the two young royals that their brother was embarrassed. No blushing cheeks were present, but would be preferred to the look that was taught on their older brother's face. Leo and Emily had a part of them that wanted to quip, but that was the part the resided in all the bad ideas that they ever had. So Emily silently stepped into the blue aura. The effects washed over her slowly and surely; soothing her bones and injuries.

As she stepped out, Xander readied himself on his steed. "If you would see the outside world beyond the view from you window, defeat me." Commanded the High Prince. "Prove that all of the time I've devoted to training you has not been in vain! Now pick up your sword!"

The dark-haired princess did not move to pick up her sword. Instead, she slowly approached her brother as she reached into a pouch that was on her belt. She pulled out a sword hilt that seemed bladeless, but as she took up her stance she pushed a button under the cross guard. The blade slid out, a long shard of steel that her brothers hadn't seen for three years.

"So you kept his blade for all this time," spoke Xander with a hint of amusement. "I trust that it is still battle worthy?"

"Very much so, big brother," she replied with the return of her cockiness. "I think it's time to get serious."

"Good," he replied; his horse neighing as it reared onto its hind legs. "Do not swing timidly, without resolve. You must genuinely try to kill me if you wish to be victorious."

The two combatants stared at each other, as the princess slowly closed the gap between them. She held her blade back like she had been taught whilst carefully side stepped to and through as she decided which angle to attack from. However, her brother decided to not give her such an approach.

Nohrian horses were a strong and agile breed, even when they are covered in armoured plating, and it is never pleasant when they charge at you. The high prince swung his sacred sword downwards at his sibling's sides. Before Siegfried could cut into her, Emily leapt into the air over the incoming sword. She did not try to swing, for she knew that any cut would be lacking in power to achieve her desire.

Having missed his target, Xander pulled on his horses reins to turn his steed around. And by 'around' I mean for his horse to practically leap into the air itself; rotating and landing on its hooves safely like a cat. Only a Nohrian horse could perform such a feat.

But his sister had landed more gracefully and more importantly faster. Fast enough to the point where she was at the side of her brother. She now held the blade with both her gloved hands; one remaining on the hilt while the other gripped the blade itself tightly. With her half-swording technique, she could thrust directly into the strappings the kept Xander's saddle stable.

Caught off guard, the prince slid off his horse away from Emily. Said horse, now without a master, panicked and cantered away from the fight. Leo was left to calm the beat down before it did something stupid.

Capitalizing on the advantage, the princess made a beeline for her fallen brother and raised her blade to his throat. She smiled cheekily, for victory was now hers…if this had been a real fight. Knowing she would not truly kill him in his moment of weakness, Xander was able to swing Siegfried with enough force to knock Emily's blade and throw her balance. This opening was not squandered, for he raised his sword free hand as he got up and back handed his sister.

The armoured fingers left a mark upon her face, but she resisted the urge to clutch her face in pain. Instead, she retreated back without stumbling and returned to her proper stance. Her brother gave her no room to pause as he continued to pursue and attacked with Siegfried; managing to make two passes that Emily barley dodged.

She remained on the defensive as her brother pushed her back. The dark-haired princess soon found herself on the healing tile and felt the sting from her face fade away. Emboldened, she raised her blade and prepared to parry her brother's next blow. But her ploy was easily read. The High Prince, instead of swinging his blade, stepped in and grabbed his sister by the sword arm.

Panicked, Emily responded by throwing a punch at her brother's face that bludgeoned his nose. But that didn't stop him from throwing her to the side onto her back. He spent his time letting the blood from his noes disappear while his sister rose from the ground; panting raggedly. The High Prince stepped away from the place of healing; holding aloft Siegfried in both hands as it began crackling with red lightning.

The princess, knowing what was coming, decided to gamble all or nothing by charging at her brother. As she ran forward, she prepared herself to dodge the magical attack that was coming. But it never came. She closed the distance and leaped into the air, twisting her hips as she swung her blade overhead in a spinning motion. Her blow stuck her brother's shoulder and managed to dent his armour and crack a bone.

As she landed, she heard Siegfried clang as it hit the ground. She stood up and saw her older brother, who had stepped back into the healing aura. He had his lips in a position that was the closest to a smile she had seen in years. "Well done, Emily. You're getting stronger every day."

Panting, the princess wiped the sweat from her brow as triumph shaped her lips. "Thanks, Xander. I couldn't have done it with your, uh, tough love."

"I disagree." He replied. "I believe you have natural talent." His attempt at a smile may be gone, but the pride for her didn't leave his eyes as he picked up his sword and placed it back into its scabbard. "Someday, along with your magic, you could be the greatest warrior in all of Nohr."

"Now you're just teasing me." Those bashful words were backed up with the full knowledge that Xander must have delayed his magical strike, without question.

"You know me, Emily. I never joke about serious matters." This was evident by his constantly stern face being even sterner than usual. "You could be the one to bring light to our kingdom so long shrouded in darkness."

Emily didn't know how to take those words for she couldn't fathom how she, the middle child and leased loved by their father, could ever bring light to anywhere. She shrugged, pressed the button on her borrowed blade and pocketed it. "Unless my mark allows me to control the weather, I don't see how that is possible. It's always dark and, personally, I like it like this." Her tone was jovial rather than sarcastic, but she still didn't meet her older brother's eyes.

Xander did not elaborate on his words, as Leo came with his horse by the reins. "Typical. You do know that true strength is more than simple swordplay, right?" His words bristled with impertiance and he could barely hide the sourness in his eyes.

The princess held her tongue as the High Prince accepted the reigns from the mage. "Calm yourself, little brother." Spoke Xander in a measured tone. "You really are compedative to a fault. As I've always said, you're a talented mage with formidable magical abilities."

"Hmm." Leo considered those words of praise before he brushed his fringe out of his eyes. "Well, just remember that pointy metal sticks are not the only path to power. Even if they are backed up by paltry parlour tricks." Smirking, he turned to his sister and regarded her marked hand. "Speaking of which, have you discovered more novelties to perform, sister?"

She grinned back at her brother whilst keeping various swear words from escaping her lips. "I have, actually. One of them would be of great interest to you, **little** brother."

"Oh, please," he scoffed. "We know that your spells are weak or just don't work against those with dragon blood. And none of your magic compares to mine; why would I be interested in them?"

"Well you see…this spell helps you realise that your collar is inside out."

"What!?" Spluttering, the young prince flailed his arms around as he looked at his fancy collar; which was indeed inside out.

Xander chuckled at his brother and even his horse was braying like it was taunting the mage. "It would appear someone got dressed while still half-asleep."

Blushing in embarrassment, Leo ran from his laughing siblings with his hands over his head. "Wh-why didn't you say something earlier?!"

Now laughing with more gusto, the High Prince gave another try at smiling. "Sorry, Leo. But that sort of thing is what makes you so very lovable."

"And very mockable." Added Emily; as all the nasty words she wanted to call her brother vanished as fast as he was running into one of the tower staircases that led below. All he could do was groan in shames as he finally vanished inside the tower.

It was then when Xander and Emily heard two sets of giggling from behind them. Turning, they saw Camila and Elise. The former had her arms folded underneath her chest while the latter was wiping away her tears of mirth. Upon being spotted, the two made their way to join the resting fighters. The eldest princess was the first to speak in a soft, loving manner: "Are you alright, Emily? Did you get hurt at all during practice? If you did, let me know right away so I can take extra-special care of you."

Politely, she declined the offer of mollycoddling from her sister, saying, "I'm perfectly fine, Camila. As always, thanks for your concern."

The youngest princess began jumping up and down to catch Emily's eye, whilst yipping, "I was worried for you too!"

"I know, Elise," she responded with a wide smile. "I doubt you'd be visiting me all the time if you didn't care about me."

The pigtailed blonde giggled and gave a cheeky smile. "Do you like it when I visit?"

In truth, she even liked it when Leo managed to visit. For as much as she loved her retainers and guard captain, the news and joy they brought lifted the boredom of staying in this fortress for so long. "You know it! Now come over here and give your sister a hug!"

"Yay!" Like a cat, the petit lady leaped at her sister and wrapped her arms around her chest. The force of contact alone spun Emily around and around, gasping for air as her sister had a surprisingly strong squeeze for her size. After a few spins in the air, the little princess soon found her feet on the ground and the hug was now of equal strength. "I love you so much! I love you more than anything in the whole, wide world!" This exclamation of happiness warmed the dark-haired princess heart and she tried to show that through their embrace.

Typical as it was, the moment was ruined by Leo. Having snuck back, his collar now fixed, he just had to chime in with a snide remark. "Elise, when do you intend to behave like the adult that you technically are?" She responded by blowing a raspberry at her brother and Emily joined her.

"Well, I for one think her cheer is a good complement to this gloomy kingdom, Leo." The straw-harried mage did not dispute Camilla. He even smiled a smile that was more pronounced than Xander, even though he was half-arsing it.

"It's not just her, big sister." Said the dark-haired princess as she stopped hugging Elise. "All of you are wonderful. Or at least to me you are…" She trailed off into a nervous chuckle. She scratched her head as grateful words tumbled from her mouth. "I-I mean…I know it must be irritating to have to come out so far to visit me and tolerate me since I lost some of my memories and all this Outsider nonsense…I just want to thank you all for everything you do for me…" Her smile then etched with mischief as she casually added. "Even you, Leo." The mage rolled his eyes, but smiled properly at his sister.

"We are grateful to have you as well," replied Xander with as much love as he could put in his voice. "But, Emily, I have some—"

"Let me tell her, Xander!" Exclaimed Camila with vivid excitement. She did not even wait for a response she was so excited. "We have wonderful news, Emily! Father asked us to take you back to the capital!"

Even though the Outsider had alluded to this in her dreams, it still felt like a bomb shell had been dropped on her. That concept, that dream, had seemed so out of reach for so long that she could not believe her sister. "Really!? Does that mean…"

Camila, smiling motherly, nodded and gently patted her sister on the shoulder. "Yes. It means you can finally leave this drafty fortress." She put a finger under her sister's chin and gazed down at her lovingly. "You must have been so lonely all this time, separated from the rest of the world…But now you'll be free!"

Elise clapped and cheered at these words, saying happily, "Isn't that wonderful!?"

"Yeah, it is…" Said Emily slowly as she drunk in those words. She then raised her arms to hug her older, and taller, sister; grinning madly. She then extended that hug to Elise and even Leo, though Camila had to drag him into range for that to happen. Xander did not join the hug, but he did pat the dark-haired princess on the head. "There will be plenty of time to discuss the details with Father." He gestured to one of the tower staircases. "Let us depart. I have already informed Gunter and he will meet us in the entrance hall with all your belongings."

At his command, the royal siblings parted and made their way down the stairs and halls of the Northern Fortress. They took the long route at Emily's request, for this would probably be the last time she would see these halls. Even though most of the furnishing was drab, compared to royal standards, and there was truly a harsh draft in most of the rooms; the princess was filled with melancholy at the prospect of leaving her home. The Outsider had called it a prison in her dreams and a part of her did feel that way. But the memories she had with her retainers and family trumped those bleak emotions, along with all the things that she learned here. She would even miss the faceless guards, though she was sure they would not miss the princess that had pranked and sneaked around the halls.

However, she was proven wrong when she and her entourage were intercepted on the floor above the entrance hall by a large number of guards. The one leading them, an orange harried spear-woman, signalled the others to bow as she picked up a hamper that was at her feet. "Lady Emily," she began in a very thick dialect you'd find in seashore towns. "We would like to give you a gift before you leave us. In commemoration of the… 'interesting' time you have spent with us."

Within the hamper was a pair of fresh, black boots. Knowing that her tripping reputation was well known, she smiled and laughed at their clear jab. "Thank you very much. You are all great comedians."

"We learned by watching you, ma'am." Their leaders jib earned laughter from her colleagues along with Leo; who earned a boot grind from Elise.

In good spirts, the dark-haired princess accepted the footwear and put them on. They were well made and it went without saying that they must have asked one of her servants for her foot size. Since it had been a long time since she had worn such things, they felt alien; not helped by the fact that she wasn't wearing socks. The lead guards-woman coughed and nodded her head back to the hamper, a pair of black, silken socks lying at its bottom. Now embarrassed, the princess gave apologise to her fellow siblings as she properly dressed herself.

Now slightly comfier in her new shoes, she looked to the guards and curtseyed to them. "Seriously, thank you all for your service."

There was a myriad of response from the guards, like "Thank you, ma'am" and "We're gonna miss ya, milady" and even a few cheeky souls who said "Don't trip on your ass, Lady Emily." The lead guard returned the curtsey and said, sincerely, "We wish you safe travels and hope you bring glory to Nohr. Take care, milady." She then turned to her fellows and began barking at them to get back to their posts, allowing the siblings to continue their journey; Emily now walking with a spring in her step and warmth in her heart.

When they reached the main hall they were not met with Gunter, but by the newest retainer, Lilith. She wore a handkerchief over her azure hair with her fringe poking out at the front. She also had a red jewel like mark on her forehead which she claimed was a very flashy birth mark.

She bowed to the royals from her position next to the open hall doors. "I hear you can finally leave the fortress. You must be very happy, Lady Emily." She spoke in a very gentle tone, the kind that could be mistaken for a breeze that passed slowly over a winding river. She lowered her yellow eyes to the new footwear of her mistress, asking, "Are those boots comfy, milady? Jakob and I did the measuring and we hope that they are to your liking?"

"I'll get used to them," replied the dark-haired princess as she carefully made her way to the entrance. "I haven't tripped up yet, so that's good. Where is Gunter and the others?"

"They will be back in a minute or two. Gunter has asked me to go with you to the capital so I can look after the horses."

The princess smiled at the maid. "Glad to hear it. I'd miss you and the others if you weren't coming along too."

Before they could continue, the High Prince directed a question at the servant as he surveyed the courtyard from the open doors. "Lilith, are the horses ready?"

"Yes, milord," she responded dutifully. "Everything is ready, and the horses seem excited for the trip." She smiled as she observed the horses that brayed near the entrance alongside a Wyvern mount that belong to Camilla. "They are all very fond of Lady Emily. Probably from all her time in the stables."

"Our Emily does love animals." Cooed the eldest princess as she went down the front steps of the castle to re-join her scaled mount. "Such a kind hearted soul…" This made Emily blush and activate her habit of playing with her short hair. "Why," continued the tall, purple haired princess as she stroked her wyvern tenderly. "She even nursed an injured baby bird back to health one time!"

Lilith opened her mouth for a split second before closing it again.

Leo spotted this and quickly enquired the maid, saying, "Is there something the matter, Lilith?"

Taken aback by the mage, the yellow-eyed maid gave a hushed response of, "Oh…no. It's nothing…"

"Isn't it obvious, Leo?" Said Elise with the same mischief in her eye that usually shone from Emily. "Lilith is sad because she going to miss Emmy!"

"Miss me?" Said the sister in question. "But she's coming with us."

"Oh," mumbled the young sister for only a split second before regaining her energy. "Well then," she began in sing-song tone, "I bet she's sad 'cause she won't have you all to herself in the stables anymore." She winked at the maid, whose face was ruby red. "You've always been especially fond of our sister, haven't you, Lilith?"

The maid was spared from answer by a prince who had hoisted himself onto his armoured mount, said High Prince's voice booming loud and clear across the courtyard. "As gripping as all this is, we should be on our way. We mustn't keep Father waiting." The siblings all nodded and the ones by the door began making their way to their mounts.

As Leo climbed on his respectfully sized horse and Elise clambered on her small pony, Gunter joined the group of royals with all four servants lined behind him. The old solider took his grey haired horse by the reins as he gave out his orders. "Flora, you and Felecia will remain here to watch over the fortress. Jakob and I will accompany Lady—"

"Bollocks to that!"

The old man's eyes sharped as he turned to the originator of those rude words; a dark-haired princess that looked at Gunter with disbelief.

"Emily," warned Xander. "What have I told you about your language."

"Never to swear unless necessary, and I feel that this is very bloody necessary." The princess walked towards her guard captain as he mounted his horse, looking steely as if he was arming himself against his liege's on coming words. "Gunter, what point is there leaving two trained maids in a place that I will probably never set foot in again. Especially ones as skilled as Flora and Felicia?"

"Lady Emily," replied the old solider in a firm tone. "It is best to leave Flora and Felicia here in case of an attack."

"Yes, attack a fortress that is famous for never being attacked once because it's too far out for anyone to care." She responded in a sarcastic tone. "And before you try and bring up that masked man, wouldn't he try and attack me on the road? Because that could happen and I think having more knives at hand is a good idea."

Camila, who was upon her wyvern, flew over and landed next to her sister. "Darling, if he did appear we would cut him to pieces before he could ever hurt you again." She gave a small as she leaned against the neck of her scaly steed. "I understand that you don't want to leave any of your servants behind. Believe me, little sister, I do. But we don't have enough horses and there seems to be only room for one in the caravan. Jakob is more than enough to tend to your needs and protect you."

Emily gave a tempered sigh. "Yes, Jakob is an excellent butler. But Flora and Felicia are frankly better fighters than him, especially Felicia. It would be a waste of her talents to leave her here; and from what you and the other have told me of Father, he will be sending me off to fight for him and it seems silly to leave two maids who can wield ice behind." Her sister nodded at the points she had made, while Felicia was blushing alongside her twin who was deathly silent.

Jakob stepped forward, a worried look on his face. "Lady Emily, if this is about your independence, I beg you not to leave me here. As I have said, I live to serve you and—"

"Jakob, I don't want to leave you behind, you dummy. I want all of you to come with me, because I value you all very highly…And you are still going to show me how to make tea. You will not weasel out of that one, mister." The silver haired butler smiled with relief, despite the dangerous prospect he would later have to face.

Gunter looked down at his liege with a softer look than before. "I understand that is what you desire, Princess, but it as Lady Camila says. There are no more horses except your own, but there is space for two in the caravan. One of them would be left behind."

"Felicia can take my steed" responded the dark-haired lady in defiant tone. "Jakob and Flora can share a horse; 'cause their steed can support two people. Besides, it might finally get one of them to propose." While Jakob just rolled his eyes, Flora was blushing fiercely; causing a chill around her that managed to freeze the ground beneath her. Smiling cheekily, she pointed to the caravan and finished her plan. "Me and Lilith will be spending our alone time in there."

The only reason a second maid blushed like mad was thanks to her little partner in crime, Elise, who added, "Looks like you are getting some more **personal** company with Emmy, eh?" Lilith buried her face into her hands, not wanting to look at anyone at the moment.

The old solider seemed happy with the outcome. He motioned to the retainers to join the entourage and so they did, the brunet being the one who was smiling the widest. She did not even trip or fall as she mounted her Ladies' steed while her twin had to hold Jakob's waist, a small smile gracing her lips. Soon, Lilith and Emily were positioned at the open end of the caravan; luckily having enough leg room alongside the weapons, staves and other equipment.

After receiving a nod from Xander, Gunter began to lead the royals out of the Northern Fortress. They cantered under the gateway while Camila flew over the tall stone walls, though she returned to ground level when they reached the gravel road that let into the hills and mountains that surrounded the isolated fortress.

Emily looked at her former home as it slowly began to shrink in size as they made their gradual way down the road. Mixed emotions were swimming around inside her, for what she had left behind and what she would soon experience; they shifted from bad to good in her mind.

"Lady Emily," tentatively asked Lilith. "Are you alright?"

She moved her head in a way that was neither a nod or a shake, her eyes still glued on the tall fortress. The princess suddenly began to hum a song that seemed fitting to sing, though she didn't have the will to commit.

Her brother, Leo, was riding behind the caravan and heard his sister. Smirking, he rode closer and asked his sister, "Do you plan to sing an actual song this time? Or is this just another sea shanti that you seem so found of."

"Yeah," she replied in a casual tone that did not reflect her mood at all.

The straw-haired prince shook his head, his smirk now a smile. "Oh, well. If you must. Just put effort into it, will you?" He paused for a moment. "And please, enjoy yourself. Whatever happens, we will all be here for you."

Emily smiled at her brother, the truth behind his words giving her the strength to sing. She turned to Lilith to share her smile, which she reflected cheerfully. Returning to stare at the fortress, which was incredibly small by this time, she opened her lips and began to sing:

"I thought I heard, the old man say; Leave her Johnny, leave her!

Tomorrow ye will get your pay and it's time for us to leave her!"

Her melancholy song drifted through the air like a morning mist; slow, calm and reaching as far and wide as it can before the sun rises and it disappears.

"Leave her Johnny, leaver her! Oh…leave her Johnny, leave her!

For the voyage is long and the winds don't blow and…"

"…it's time for us to leave her." Finished Lilith, like she used to do in their time in the stables together.

Emily continued to sing, her eyes still trying to spy her home when only the tower in which she resided was visible.

"Oh the wind was foul and the sea ran high..."

"Leave her Johnny, leave her," sang not only Lilith, but the twins joined in like they would do when Emily would practice piano; including the fact that Felicia always sung off key.

"She shipped it green and none went by…"

"…And it's time for us to leave her!" Were now sung by all the females; the princess' adding a high and low scale to their shared song.

Together, the continued to sing…

"Leave her Johnny, leave her! Oh…leave her Johnny, leave her!

For the voyage is long and the winds don't blow…"

…even when the Northern Fortress had finally vanished from sight.

"…And it's time for us, to leave her."

" **Leave Her Johnny"** watch?v=gEWS5dGSDOc


	4. Chapter 3: Soldier of Nohr (Act 1)

**I own nothing. Fire Emblem is owned by Nintendo and Dishonoured is owned by Bethesda.**

The Empress of Gristol: (Act 1)

Chapter 3: Soldier of Nohr

If Emily had to describe Nohr with a single word it would be rocky. For stone, jagged and smooth, was what she noticed the most during her journey to the capital of Nohr. The windy roads that cut into the mountains gave the princess a clear view of the typical countryside; or at least that's what her siblings told her. And that view did have fields of wheat, twisted forests and a few rivers, but stone hills were always present in these places in one way or another.

And even when they left the mountains and reached a town as night fell, most of the houses were built more with stone than timber. Though the wood that was there were mostly splattered in paint, obscuring the muted colours and giving life to the town. The villagers greeted the royals, many curious to see the Princess that had been hidden away, and the night was spent feasting. While Xander and Camila ate their fill and conversed with the mayor and nobles, Emily and Elise spent their time with the common folk and the few children that had snuck in to steal chicken legs. Leo hung between the two despite his best at trying to stay in the corner of the room; his brother introducing him to the local mage talent and his sister pulling and teasing him into the feasting at large.

All through the merriment, Gunter and Jakob kept to their roles. Both stayed at Lady Emily's side; one dispensing advice and caution about drink and the other testing drink and food for nefarious intentions. While Lilith, Flora and Felecia drank and ate on the orders of their mistress to 'let their hair down'. While the brunet whole heartedly feasted on pork and potatoes, the other two maids kept the village centre from being too much of a pig sty; even after many of the villagers left, some with another's husband or wife in their arms.

By the time the morning came and the royal convey continued on its way, Emily was nursing a headache; humming the songs that she had sung and traded with the citizens of Nohr. She had received some snark from Leo and critique from Xander, but both brothers knew that their sister was having the time of her life. That joyous high she was on lasted for most of the journey, even though she never experienced another feast of that calibre at their other stops at civilisation.

For despite the grit that filled the many cracks of the land shrouded in darkness, the dark-harried princess couldn't help but fall in love with the Kingdom of Nohr. The hardened nature of the rural views had a charm to them, like a grandfather who had spent his years in the service and had a real cynicism and crassness that made him loveable no matter how hard he scowled. And the few people she had met and seen seemed to show the range of the best people the land had to offer, in her eyes. From the poor, hardworking every-man who kept his decency and wit to the nobility who held honour in the highest while being slightly show offish and mischievous. These may be in fact the minority and there were no doubt less savoury characters out there, but Emily thought of those when her country came to mind and that filled her with honour of being the royalty to these dark lands.

Despite that, the princess could not deny the unease that she felt when she first laid her eyes on the capital of Nohr, Windmire. From the hill the convoy was trudging down, you could see that the sky over the city was truly thick with darkness; as if the stars had died and thus scared off the moon and sun. Stone was present, in the form of the many walls that divided the expansive city, and its colour was darker than coal. So dark that any light that tried to glow from the buildings or streets were dulled by the shadows the walls cast.

When they reached the main gate, Emily saw the soldiers that kept a guard of the gate house and noticed how their faces bore no character. Not even a hardened look or even a comically evil glare, just blank slates that had no life inside of them. This didn't just apply to the armed guards, for as the royals entered Windmire you could see the same lifelessness in the faces of the poor in rags. Emily had never seen such destitution, even though she had spied homes of vassals that looked like they could collapse at any second on her journey. In this section of the capital, they had collapsed. Its inhabitants scurried away from the royals like rats and those who stayed did so out of hunger.

Even when they exited the slums, the dark-haired princess noticed how different everything was from the numerous villages she had visited. The architecture was sharper and more monochrome, reminding the princess of the fortress she had spent her days in. And with more wealth came more life, but the only footsteps that could be heard were of soldiers that had joined their convoy. The people of the city seemed to have retreated in doors, out of their own free will or not was something that Emily couldn't tell.

She looked at Lilith, who was still in the caravan with her, and she could see how uncomfortable she was. The princess wagered that her other retainers felt the same and that her siblings weren't affected because they were just used to it.

Soon the royals passed through the final wall, which circled around the castle of Windmire that was positioned at the bottom of a cenote, called Krakenburg. The deep, circular pit that housed a lake at the bottom was covered with years of Nohrian stone work. Lining the slope where platoon houses, smithies and other buildings of war that each had burning fires that gave the hole in the ground light. Bridges crossed the gap of the pit along with circular platforms, all of them hanging over the tall castle that had been founded on engineered land in the middle of the cenote's lake. Despite all the light that burned and flickered, the darkness was at its strongest in this damp place.

Half way down the cenote were the stables that the convoy stopped at, marking the end of their journey. Lilith slowly crawled out of the caravan and got to work, taking each of the horses used during the journey and finding them a place in the stables. Flora did the same, dropping down from her horse with Jakob, she guided Camila's wyvern to its personal stable.

Emily leapt out of her caravan and before she hit the ground, her butler was at her side. "Milady," began Jakob as he bowed. "It seems that King Garon is waiting for you in the castle courtyard."

"Thank you, Jakob," replied the princess in a calm tone. She turned away from the silver-haired butler, who had moved in to straighten his mistress' coat that she wore over her black and white armour. She gazed up and down the walls of the cenote, drinking in the foreboding atmosphere. Having been here once before in her child days, she knew that the bleakness of the city hadn't been this bad. And if it could get this bad, a part of her was dreading her encounter with her father.

She barely remembered him, but Garon's deeds had reached her lonely fortress from the lips of her siblings and they did not paint a flattering. Cruelty was the most told tale, though Xander sometimes called them firm decisions. But the main fact that made the king out as very cruel was the very decision to keep Emily in the Northern Fortress. An act that had many explanations, but the one most gossiped—and the one the princess believed in—was that Garon loved Emily the leased and wanted her out of his sight.

She was interrupted from her thoughts by Elise, who was tugging on her arm with a wild smile on her face. "Come on, Emmy! Father's waiting!" Smiling back at her excited sister, the dark-haired princess took one last glance at the castle below before she followed her little sister. Felicia and Jakob followed suit along with Gunter, who was still on his trusty horse. They went down a wide passage that had been carved into the side of the cenote that lead to floor below. This lead to stairs that went to the gate house that was on the bridge that lead to the front door of the castle.

Xander, Camila and Leo were further ahead of Emily and Elise; the former dragging her heals while her little sister ran ahead. The blonde stopped, turned and waved her arms at her sister; oblivious to the unease that was present. With her retainers at her heels, she sped up her pace and was soon in the main hall of Windmire castle.

There was certainly a glamour to these stone halls that were lined with marble and gold. The fire light gleamed off statues and suits of armour in a way that made it feel like they had eyes that were watching your every move. And despite the amount of light and the life that lined the halls, whether they were guards or maids, shadows still reigned over the rooms and the celling was still lost in darkness.

They soon reached the courtyard and it was very large. The floor had white and black checkers, barring a square in the centre that was sunk further into the ground and had to be reached by steps. On the over side of this space, atop more steps that lead to another level of the yard, was the King himself.

He has an old, wrinkled face with eyes that were circled by shadow. Atop his head was an iron crown of black thorns that sat atop white hair that was tied back. The rest of his hair was a massive white beard that had a single strip of black where a goatee would be. Dressed in armour similar to Leo and Xander, he sported a large white coat that was lined with fur and a large black collar. But the first thing that Emily noticed about him, besides his strong presence, was that there was not a shred of love in his black eyes as they gazed back at his daughter.

The siblings gathered at the base of the steps that their father was on and waited for him to talk. It took a short while as he glared at them all like a lion observing its pack, until he finally spoke in low yet booming voice. "I see you made it here safely, Emily."

Kneeling down, the dark-haired princess responded to her father calmly. "Yes, Father. Long have I wished to see you and visit Castle Krakenburg again." She nervously chuckled, adding, "It feels like I'm in a dream…"

"It is only thanks to your diligence that you are here." Grunted the King in a cold tone. "I am told that you are now a warrior that is almost on par with Xander." Said High Prince nodded, but didn't say anything. "You finally possess the strength to be an instrument of Nohr's power in the world." And with how he talked, an instrument was all he seemed to value Emily.

Her older sister suddenly pipped up. "Father, I am still worried about that masked man that attacked our poor Emily all those years ago. We hunt him, but he has vanished and may try and strike again."

"Yeah," joined in Elise. "And the fact he had the same mark as her is super weird and creepy. We can't let him hurt Emmy."

Said sister they were concerned for gave them a casual wave of her arm. "Please, sisters. If I'm on par with Xander, then I can take that creep no problem."

The King, as if he ignored most of the words given by his daughters, turned his gaze upon the mage. "Leo, have you made any discovery of the mark's origins."

Bowing, the straw-haired royal answered his father concisely. "The only thing we know is that the mark has only been found on the Dragon Gate, father. Nor can we recreate it to the same affect, besides the seal troubadours use to summon staves." Elise waved her own palm to provide an example.

"Very well," spoke Garon; dismissing his son without any thanks. "Emily, show me the mark." Still knelt, the princess complied with her King's orders and removed the glove from her left hand. She raised that hand and made the mark glow. The old ruler didn't say anything at first, as he gazed at the mark with scrutiny. He then made a small gesture to his daughter to stand, which she complied with instantly.

"Emily," he began in a commanding tone; the voice used to address a solider. "As you know, Nohr is at war with the eastern kingdom of Hoshido." The princess nodded. "We of the royal family are descendants of the ancient gods, the First Dragons. As inheritors of that divine strength, we conquer those who oppose of with ease." There was finally a smile that graced his cracked lips, as he imagined fields of beaten warriors. "One who learns to wield that power can destroy and entire army of common troops." With the smile gone, Garon gestured to the prince and princess the surrounded Emily. "Xander, Camila and Leo have already shown they possess this power…" The little blonde didn't look at her father. "…I except no less from you."

The dark-haired princess did not falter under her King's glare as she stared back at him. "I am aware of your expectations, Father." She said in a voice that did not bore her usual tone, but a tone that was firm like her older brother. "And I have trained every single day to become more like my siblings. I will not let you down."

The King's face was unreadable after hearing those words, his eyes disappearing for a few seconds into the darkness that surrounds them. "Hmm…you, and your mark, show promise. But you need a suitable weapon in order to serve Nohr."

Shifting his royal robe, he raised his pointy fingers and a purple mist suddenly appeared in front of the princess. From the mist came a spinning sword that stopped when its visage solidified. It was black and had molten cracks that glowed along with the purple mist that still clung to its edges. All the royals could do was stare at it in amazement.

"This is Ganglari, a sword infused with magic from another world beyond the Dragon Gate." Explained the king as he lowered his arm to his side. With this sword at your side, you will crush the Hoshidan army with ease."

Emily stepped back with a smile on her face, glad that her father was gracing her with a weapon. She reached out and grabbed the handle.

 _No, no more! Not again!_

 _Mommy!_

 _Nooo!_

 _Get away from her!_

 _CORVO!_

The princess gasped. She couldn't help herself, for those voices had been so loud and had sounded so real. Her blood was also flaring as if it was on fire, boiling inside of her painfully. Despite that, she still stood tall and besides the noise she had made, it looked like nothing had happened.

"Emily, darling, is there something wrong?"

The princess, not wanting to cause a scene, turned and grinned at her older sister. "Nope, nothing at all, sis!"

"Then why are you crying?"

Baffled, the dark-haired princess raised her free hand to one of her cheeks and indeed there were dribbles of water. She quickly rubbed them away, still smiling, and explained, "Wow, I guess I'm happier than I realised." She turned back to her father and bowed, trying not to show her face to him. "Thank you for this generous gift, Father." All the while she kept her tone at a normal level while coping with the pain inside of her.

As if he hadn't noticed anything, Garon spoke in the same tone as before. "Now, let us see you put that sword to its proper use…" He looked across the room and barked at a random guard. "Bring out the prisoners!"

All the royal siblings turned at these words; Emily using this time to allow her to put the sword on her belt. The moment her hand wasn't touching the hilt, her blood settled. Flexing her sword arm, she focused her vision on the six prisoners that were being dragged in.

"These are prisoners from our most recent skirmish with Hoshido. I want to see your power with my own eyes."

"Alright…"

"…"

"…"

"…Would that be my dragon blood power or my mark power?"

King Garon rolled his eyes. "Both, in that order."

Emily risked a smile at her father before she turned her attention to the courtyard. Looking down at the square floor in the middle, she saw that there was a square structure that had collapsed into itself. More importantly, as she cast her mind out, she could sense a dragon vein just a few steps before her. In fact, she swore she could see green sparks now that it was on her radar.

Stepping forward into the sparks, she mimicked what her brother did atop the Northern Fortress and raised her mark-free hand in the air. She could feel her blood reacting to the dragon vein, though it wasn't as painful as wielding Ganglari, and fire started appearing in her hand. The feeling was quite rejuvenating as a warmth filled her body from tip to toe. It was also comforting to know, even though she never had any real doubts before, that she truly was royalty and a part of this family.

The fireball shot from her hand and went straight to the centre of the courtyard. The fire covered the derby that lay broken on the ground and melted it into dust in seconds; leaving an empty floor that was glowing with healing blue aura.

"Whoa! That was amazing, Lady Emily!"

The Princess almost jumped out of her skin, for she had forgotten that her retainers and guard captain were still at hand. "Felicia is quite right," spoke the silver haired butler that was armed with a smile. "A jolly good show, ma'am."

"Quite," agreed Gunter in his nicest tone. "That enclave you've excavated will serve us well. Your father has armed these prisoners in hopes of a show."

"Well then…" she said as her lips widened into a mischievous grin. "…Let's give him the best show we can. But first..." She turned her head to her left. "Jakob! My climbing bandana, if you please."

"Excuse me! Are you even listening?"

"Huh?" Emily looked in the direction of the rough, booming voice. Her eyes soon found the speaker. She was a blonde haired woman that wore a horned-mask with red feathers, though it seemed to serve as a headband rather than a proper mask. There were wavy tattoos under her fiery eyes and she wore a necklace or large, black pearls. Her garb resembled bandages, mainly in the chest area, and she had an exposed midriff that showed off her tanned skin. "Did you say something?" Asked the princess.

"I said that I am Rinkah!" Roared the warrior. "Daughter of—"

"I have your bandana here, Lady Emily."

"Oh, thank you, Jakob." The princess took the purple cloth with a gold fang pattern from her butler's outstretched hand. "Sorry… please continue," apologised the Nohrian; pausing as she donned her bandana around her neck.

Angrily, Rinkah continued. "I am the Daughter of the Flame Tribe's honourable chieftain!" The Oni Savage raised the brass-handled club she sports and pointed it at the dark-haired lady. "What is your name, Nohrian princess?"

Said princess gave a very theatrical bow to the tanned woman and gave her answer in a polite tone, despite her frivolous display. "My name is Emily, o'honourable princess of the Flame Tribe."

"Emily?"

The new voice's owner was far to the right of Rinkah, and he was a green-haired man that wore a purple scarf and a thin, black headband. You could see his chiselled abs from an opening of his rags, which did draw the princess' eyes down for a moment. However, the look of surprise in his grey eyes made the Nohrian truly curious. "Yes, that is my name. Have you heard of me?"

The man closed his eyes for a moment. When he opened them, they had steeled themselves like the tone of his introduction. "I am Kaze, a ninja of Hoshido." He pulled out a strange, foreign looking knife from his belt and dropped into a combat stance. "Show me what you can do."

Emily did a brief scan of the other prisoners; noting two plain clothed samurai that were stationed behind the two officers, as it were. "Very well, Kaze," she replied as she raised and lowered her bandana and hood, respectively. "A show is what you will get."

And with that, she disappeared. The Hoshidans were not the only one perturbed by this event; most notable example being Elise's squeals of 'Where is she?' The ninja's eyes moved faster than an arrow and could pierce the shadows like one to, but even he could not find the princess. "Rinkah, Koda, fall in! I can't see her! We need to regroup before she tries to flank us!"

Koda, the samurai who stood near Rinkah, readied his katana as he made to move across the room. The Oni Savage was one step ahead of him. So much so that she managed to sweep Koda's legs with her club—

"What!?"

Before he had time to process what happened, the tanned warrior was upon him. Luckily, the other samurai had stepped in and blocked Rinkah's overhead swing. Kaze stepped back swiftly, his grey eyes fixating on his suddenly treacherous ally. His ally who, he noted, had lost the flame in her eyes to a black void.

The defending samurai was forced backwards as the black-eyed Hoshidan broke his guard. At that moment, the Nohrian princess appeared before Rinkah; who's eyes had returned to normal. The samurai was unprepared for her appearance, nor the kick she gave him that knocked him into Kaze. As they both fell to the ground, Emily began to walk back to her family and servants; an unmistakable smirk creasing her bandana. The Oni Savage did not attempt to pursue her, for she was taken by nausea and was vomiting onto the floor.

"Before we really begin," shouted the princess as she slowly walked past one of the enclave's openings. "I have a question for you, Father. Not that I don't appreciate this sword you have given me, but why does it boil my blood when I hold it?"

The King was not the one who answered, for his eyes where now completely shadowed after witnessing the mark's power. Leo was the one who responded as he nonchalantly strolled to his sister, being the only sibling who had not been stunned by Emily's display. "Whatever do you mean, sister?"

To answer, she grabbed Ganglari by its hilt—wincing upon contact—and threw the sword at her brother. He caught it with his armoured fingers and pain almost made him drop it. "Hells bells! My blood! I feel like its burning me!"

"I know, right?" Instead of commenting on her brother's choice of swear words, she raised and made her mark glow; its light still visible behind the glove. Wisps of shadows that had the texture of oil sprung around her left arm, her marked arm. From those vapours came a grey, scaly hand that snatched Ganglari from the mage—who was not fazed at all by this. It dragged the weapon across the short space between Leo and Emily and disappeared at the half way mark. Catching the sword and quickly sheaving it, the princess then looked at her father just as the shadows left his eyes.

"Ganglari taps into your dragon blood to grant strength." He explained, curtly. "The pain is a trifling price to pay for the power it grants you." He then made a sweeping gesture with both his hands, as if was about to conduct and orchestra. "Instead of whining like a child, let the pain sharpen your senses! Go, show me floors spilt with the blood of Hoshido!"

The way he spoke sent a chill down her spine, talking as if he wanted her to kill these prisoners. Emily knew that he was a cruel man, but she did not believe that the man who helped birth Xander would be so needlessly…evil. There was no other word for it.

After curtsying once more, she began to move to Gunter's side. "Leo, could you hold Jakob's and Felicia's hands?" Nodding quietly, plus eye-roll, the straw-haired royal quickly grabbed the servants' fingers. They exchanged puzzled looks, not wanting to question their ladies' orders.

The mage sighed as he felt the eyes of the other siblings on his back. "Emily is planning on using her time spell," he explained aloud, testily. "By me holding your hands, I am sparing you of its effects. This is probably so she can give orders without the prisoners overhearing."

"Yes, yell that, why don't you." Grumpily muttered the princess as she grabbed the reigns of Gunter's horse. "Maybe a little louder next time; make sure that people across the border can hear our plans."

She did not wait for her brother to deliver a witty comeback. Instead, she raised her marked hand and drained the colour out of the room. Time did not grind to a complete halt, proven by Rinkah slowly rising to her feet; the sickness having worn off. But only the royals could hear the words of the dark-haired princess, as she shared her plan with her servants.

"Felicia, you and I will engage the prisoners from the right side of the enclave. Gunter, you and Jakob shall enter the front entrance of the enclave." She made a gesture with her free hand each time, illustrating the plan of attack. "I will try and bait Rinkah into charging us. Shouldn't be too hard, since she comes from a tribe of hot heads. If they follow her lead, I will teleport behind them and you, Felicia, shall take the brunt of the attack while I flank them."

"A-are you sure, Lady Emily?" Asked the brunet, tentatively.

"Felicia, I've told you before, you're a talented fighter. There's no need to be worried." The maid nodded and gulped at the same time, a bead of sweat tricking down her face.

"I take it that I shall prevent the prisoners from reaching the enclave?" Interjected Gunter, as he lifted a steel lance that he'd been equipped with at a time unknown to Emily. "Guard the right entrance while Jakob supports me from behind?"

"Exactly, Gunter. You will also cover us if we need to retreat inside. My dragon vein usage has charged the tiles with healing aura, so it shall heal any injury we have. However, I plan to try and force the prisoners past your entrance. If we manage to do so, you will take my place and I shall then guard their left. Ultimately, I want to force them to the front entrance of the enclave. This is where you, Jakob, shall stop them from using the front so we can box them in. I want them on their knees in that exact spot." She made her final indication at a spot that was a few feet away from the enclave and in line with her father's current positon. "Is that clear?"

"It's quite clear that your plan is needlessly convoluted," commented Leo; disapproval dripping from every word. "What's the point in forcing the position of the prisoners when you can cut them down once you've flanked them?"

"Come now, Leo," replied the dark-haired princess; grinning widely. "A show needs conflict to make it interesting! All the players need to shine on stage, especially these poor saps. Give them a fighting chance before we throw them into cells."

"Sister, you—"

"Indeed, Lady Emily," said Jakob as he gave a small bow. "We are ready to serve. Or at least, Felicia and I are." The butler glanced at Gunter, his eyes narrowing into beads. "This old fossil, however, may need to stay back. His arm looks like its straining under the weight of that lance."

"I may be slightly rusty…," replied the veteran in a calm tone. "…but I am in more shape to serve our lady than you are, Jakob. Stop yapping and get ready to support me. Felicia!" The brunet almost dropped the knife she had pulled from her sleeve at the sound of her name. "Do you understand your orders?"

"Y-yes, Gunter." She gulped; trying to contain her nerves. "Shall w-we get going, Lady Emily?"

"Yes." With that, colour returned to the world. Leo released the servants of his sisters and returned to his original position. The prisoners, now released from the spell, were scrambling together; unaware of what the Nohrian princess had done to the flow of time. The samurai were together on the right side of the courtyard, one rubbing his bruised leg. His unwitting attacker, Rinkah, had finished puking on the floor. The ninja, Kaze, was at her side with a helping hand outstretched. The tanned woman smacked that hand away, getting up under her own steam that was practically billowing out of her ears.

"I don't need you help!" She barked.

"As per usual," replied the ninja; smiling softly in relief. "At least the spell she put on you is gone."

"But how did she do it? I saw no tome, but she still managed to get inside of me."

"It was really quite easy."

The Hoshidan officers turned towards the sound of the voice; that being the princess, who was standing by the right entrance of the enclave with her maid in toe. "Possession is an effective spell on those of weak will," spoke Emily in frivolous tone.

The fire in the Oni Savage's eyes burned like miniature suns as she gritted her teeth and clutched her club like she was strangling the princess before her. "You dare mock me!"

"No, I'm more mocking your Fire Tribe." The hooded royal stretched her arms and yawned. "I mean, if you're the daughter of the chieftain—the smouldering princess, if you will—your people must be a sorry lot if you are their best."

The furnace reached its peak, reeking animosity and contempt for the one who slandered her. But Rinkah, instead of erupting, plateaued her rage. The flames were still writhing, but a douse of unexpected control tempered the fury of the Oni Savage. She smiled a toothy smile, showing teeth that were sharp like a canine's. "Ah…I see. You almost had me, trickster. But I won't commit the same mistake twice."

"Aw, shucks." The princess clapped, while inside she was swearing internally. "I had you pegged all wrong, my apologies." She took a moment to consider where she went wrong. "I guess calling your tribe the wrong name on purpose was too obvious?"

"That was on purpose?" Replied the Oni Savage. "I just credited that to how stupid most Nohrian women are."

This remark was responded by the smallest princess. "Hey!" Shouted Elise, her cheeks puffed out in indignation. "That's not very nice!"

Emily turned her head around. "Elise, she's just trying to bait me like I tried to bait her. And poor—"

"Emily, look out!"

The princess quickly brought her focus back to the battle, thanks to her maid that had jumped to her aid. For Kaze, while Rinkah reversed the Nohrians strategy, had closed the distance with light footsteps. If Felecia hadn't blocked the flying shuriken, the ninja would have scored a hit.

Before the iron star hit the floor, the Oni Savage had followed the lead of her fellow fighter. With a thunderous charge, she was brandishing her club that—due to some presumed magic—was billowing with fire and flame. Rinkah swung for the maid, who was already in an awkward position, and managed to strike a fiery blow. The brunet yelped in pain as she lurched back, forcing the princess to also move back. Her garb was tarnished by the flames, specifically her right shoulder, and blood was drying in the heat. But without raising a hand, the scion of the Ice Tribe summoned a chilly wind that extinguished the flames.

With battle now upon her, Emily cleared her mind of everything besides the enemies in front of her. She pulled Ganglari from her belt, wincing as her blood began to boil once more, and moved to guard her maid. Kaze was now on the assault with his sharp knife. The princess easily deflected the main strike, but she felt something slice at her armoured arm. The ninja stepped back so fast that he was almost a blur. He flicked his left wrist to shake off the few drops of blood on his wrist blade. "A ninja's blade may not cut deep, but it can sap you of your strength." He closed his eyes for a brief second before he revealed two jewels that sharper than diamonds. "Your death need not come all at once."

The brunet, who had seen the sneak attack herself, opened up her right palm to reveal the same mark that Elise had. It glowed blue and, within seconds, a healing stave appeared in her hand. She waved in a circular motion at her mistress and her poisoned wound was healed.

"Thanks, Felecia," replied the royal. She did not look at her maid to say this. Instead, she was watching the samurai fall in line with their officers; their katanas poised and ready. Emily motioned to her maid to fall back, the both of them slowly backing away from the four advancing Hoshidans. Despite the beginning mishap, it seemed like the plan was proceeding smoothly. She raised her marked hand and…nothing happened. Well that's not true. There was no yellow glow that burned through her mark, but she was feeling an emptiness that she had neglected to notice. The feeling of her magical stamina being bone dry. "Shit."

She had not time to panic, for the Oni Savage was taking a swing for her head. Emily dogged the fiery club with a simple back step, but when one of the samurai followed up his superior she used the magical sword parry the thrusting blade. With the brief bit of room she had, she yelled out to all her supporters, saying, "Guys, I'm bone dry! We need a change of plan!"

"I thought as much."

Kaze was the first to react to the voice on his left, the one that came from the enclave, and was the one who received an armoured kick to the face. Gunter charged past the booted ninja and swiftly thrusted his spear at one of the samurai. He gravely wounded the solider as he charged past, said solider dropping his weapon.

As a fountain began to fall down his arm, the samurai ran blindly in a panicked frenzy. He made it up the steps of the enclave where he was graced with good fortune. As his feet touched the blue-lighted tiles, the blood he had lost returned to his wound. He watched in awe as his wound closed shut, without any pain, and he was in jubilation when he realised that all of his injuries were gone. However, his luck was terminated by the armoured hand that forcefully spun his around.

"This space is for my lady, not you, whelp."

The trained samurai tried to throw a punch at the silver haired butler, but Jakob's knife had already slashed into his side. He yelled in pain, unable to prevent the Nohrian from throwing him near the bottom entrance of the enclave. Though his wound was quickly healed, the samurai was soon robbed of consciousness when the butler backhanded him down the steps.

The remaining Hoshidans were quick to funnel into the enclave to escape the knighted horseman's flanking. Leading the group was Rinkah and she wasted no time and charged the butler. The last samurai and ninja were protecting their rear, which was being assaulted by the knight and maid. Meanwhile, Emily was running around the corner of the enclave; cursing to herself for not keeping tabs on her manna. The only way for her to recharge was to wait and rest…or is it?

She recalled the words of the Outsider as her eyes fell upon the used dragon vein; its green glow now lighter and fainter than before. The hooded-royal, once she reached the vein in good time, knelt down and touch the green aura with her marked hand. Instantaneously, the green dissipated and a new feeling washed over her body alongside her boiling blood. Her mark glowed brightly; not as bright as usual, but just enough for the Princess to cast a few more spells.

Standing straight, she spied the brawl between her butler and the savage; said tanned woman having missed the servant's head by a few inches. Emily, with her hand raised, focused her attention to the space behind the Hoshidan warrior. Within a few seconds, she blinked from the vein to the blue tiles behind Rinkah. The Flame Tribe member did not notice the princess until her blade had cut into her back. Roaring in pain, she was forced forward into a fist to the stomach at the curtsey of Jakob. He then grabbed her arm and threw her down the steps, though she didn't lose consciousness.

"Lady Emily, there is no need for you to continue soiling your hands with this filth." Said the butler as he twirled one of knives in his hand. He flashed a smile at his master, his other hand resting on his chin as he closed his eyes like he was in prayer. "Please, relax and leave the rest of the fighting to us."

"Yeah! We've got this!" As the brunet said these confidant words, she had disarmed the last samurai; who cuts covered with frost all over his limbs. The Hoshidan popsicle could do nothing to stop the maid from kicking him in the abdomen. He stumbled back, too cold and numb to recognise pain, and Jakob was the one who grabbed him and threw him towards his beaten brethren. Rinkah, who had one foot on the steps, had to doge as the samurai tumbled down and landed next to his fellow, unconscious warrior.

"Excellent work, Felicia." Complemented the butler; who had dropped his smile back to a slight sneer. "If only your domestic duties had the same quality as your combat skills. You wouldn't be such a terrible maid."

"Hey!" Complained the Ice Tribe scion, who couldn't really fight against his claim so she said no more.

"Focus, you two!" Barked Gunter. "We are still in a battle!"

Where they? The samurai were well and truly beaten, and the officers weren't faring well either. Kaze, while having managed to make the knight drop his lance, was sporting sword slash after sword slash; for a new one was given when it was healed by the blue aura. The constant pain was forcing him back, distracting him to the point where he didn't notice the person behind him. Emily, who had decided to not follow her butler's suggestion, wrapped her arms around his waist. Before he could register this, she spun on her heels and threw the man off his feet. He landed gingerly on the top of steps that Rinkah had climbed, the tanned-woman clutching her bleeding side.

Before her injury could fully heal, Felicia pulled out two daggers and yelled, "Here goes nothing!" A cold wind began to swirl around her and she threw her daggers it became a surge of frost. One dagger missed Kaze's left thigh, but Rinkah's reopened and she roared in pain. However, both of them were blown off their feet by the blast of cold air that followed the two knives. They flew over their beaten comrades and joined them on the ground.

While Gunter cantered past his fellows and lady to secure the beaten prisoners, Emily was patting her maid on the back. "Excellent work, Felicia! You truly are a marvel in battle."

"Aw, your too kind, milady" nervously replied the brunet; who was blushing madly. "I'm not that good. To be honest, I was expecting to mess that manoeuvre up."

"You did miss your mark on the ninja," remarked the silver-haired man; an ugly shade of jealously tainting his face. "Very sloppy of you. But that is to be excepted." The blush from the maid's face vanished and was replaced by shame and despair.

"Jakob!" interjected the princess as she frowned at her butler. "Lay off the woman and give her the credit she deserves. Jealously suits no one, so fix your attitude, mister."

"My apologies, Lady Emily." He bowed low, low as you could possible go while standing. "I will try and improve my behaviour from now on." He waited for her reply, but all he heard was the tapping of his mistress' boots and the heat of her glare on his neck. Sighing, he turned to his fellow servant and bowed to her; just not as low as before. "A-and I apologise for my comments, Felicia." She did not notice the begrudging tone he spoke in, for she pepped up instantly.

Emily rolled her eyes but did not comment. Instead, she and her retainers made their way to their Hoshidan foes. The officers were still conscious, along with the frost bitten samurai, and had staggered to their feet. They could not back away from the oncoming princess, who had lowered her battle head wear, for the mounted knight was at their back. With their current injuries and that one of their breather had been knocked out cold, the Hoshidans knew that their time had come.

The ninja was the first to fall to his knees as the cold he still felt began to weaken his ligaments. The others followed suit like dominos; the fire in Rinkah's eyes now dwindling. Kaze had his eyes closed once more, but there was now a sullen crease across his brow. "So this is how it ends…"

"Oh, stop being so mopey." The green-haired man was slow to point his sight at the Nohrian princess; who had sheathed her mystical blade so she could brandish a cheeky smile. "Considering the circumstances, you fought as best as you could and excided my expectations. But you all are still heading back to your cells. And unless Hoshido pays for your ransom, you'll be staying there for a long—"

"Stop babbling, you idiot girl! Finish them!"

It took a moment for Emily to register that these words had come from her father. It took longer for her to notice that her four siblings were exchanging looks at themselves and her; each one bearing a different variant of discomfort. And it took looking up at the King's eyes, seeing the hunger and thirst, for Emily to realise what she was being asked to do.

It was as if the maid twins had stroked her spine with a cold finger each. But unlike the days of the Northern Fortress, there was no warmth from the person who chilled her bones. That person who she had heard stories about, many cruel stories from the mouths of her own siblings. But there had been a few, told by her oldest brother, that talked about a man who was harsh yet honourable. Emily could see no honour in what she was being ordered to do.

"But, Father…Why?"

The King's face tightened and a menacing aura began to emanate from his very being. "You dare question me!?" Boomed his thundering voice; his words carrying the impact of a sharp axe.

However, the dark-haired princess parried those words; her will surging though her as she interrupted the old royal. "I do, Father! There is no point in killing enemies when they're this helpless, especially when you gain more with their life intact." She pointed at the Flame Tribe warrior. "She is practically Tribal royalty! A few digits lower than a King's ransom, at best—"

"I will not argue this point!" Bellowed Garon with the strength of a fell dragon. "Draw your sword and cut them down!"

Her will seemed to shrivel as the very heat of the order continued to wash over her. Without thinking, her hand reached for Ganglari and began to pull it out of its sheath.

 _Corvo…_

Her sword half-drawn, the princess paused as a familiar voice graced her ear drums; a voice that sounded like it was coming from a great distance away. Her eyes went out of focus, along with the world around them, as she continued to listen…

… _why didn't you kill them?_

… _That is not a question a child should be asking._

 _I don't care, I really want to know. You could have blown their heads off in two seconds flat. Mother asked you to do your best—_

 _I gave my best. It's much harder to keep your opponents alive than to drop them like flies._

 _So you were just showing off?_

 _No. There was no need to kill people over a pointless quarrel._

 _But they said they hated mother! How is sparing them the best thing to do?_

 _It's not, Emily. It is the right thing to do._

The princess slid back into reality as fast as she had left it; one where her blood was boiling and her nerves where shaky. Though these voices were a new type of haunting, she had mastered the art of waking from dreams and nightmares as discreetly as possible. But inside, her mind was scrambling to make sense of those faint words. In particular, she was trying to recall the tones of the second voice. The voice of Corvo…

"Emily!"

Her head snapped to the join call of her sisters. Both of them were watching with pure worry in their eyes as the merciless aura continued to build from the King. It was in that moment, gazing at Elise and Camila, that she knew what to do.

She pushed Ganglari back into place and turned away from her father.

Xander, who had kept quite during this whole affair, let out a sharp gasp as he felt the King's anger peak. In that brief moment, fear tried to bleed onto his face of stone as he watched his little sister walk far to the side of the prisoners. But he couldn't speak or show weakness, not in front of his father; who was signalling a guard to attack the disobedient child…?

Leo was the first to spot what was about to happen. And even then, he could have never seen this coming. The mark glowing on Emily's hand had suggested something mundane to the mage. A rash judgement.

From the yellow brand, water began to crawl out and slink up her arm in a spiral pattern. Once it covered everything from the tips to the shoulder blades, the water began to twist itself around her armoured limb at the pace of a torrent. The air was soon filled with a low growl, one that managed to challenge the dominating presence of the King in terms of its bite. Garon was forced to pause as his eyes became shadowed in darkness once more.

But even he could not anticipate the screaming that glided through his ears like broken glass. Elise had to hold her ears as the screaming continued to build along with the growl turned roar. The others could barely stand it, but they were entranced by the second liquid that was gushing from the mark. A black, oily liquid was now tainting the spinning pattern. The two substances were colliding and battling with one another as the spun faster and faster.

The dark-haired royal was facing the Hoshidans just as Rinkah, though hurting from the sheer noise, looked into her Nohrian eyes. The blue stones held no love or compassion, even when she flicked her wrist and unleashed her storm. The veiny patterns of blue and black shot through the air like needs as it segmented into many branches of thorns. All four of the prisoners were skewered like raw meat in a blink of an eye. The ones that had been kneeling dropped into heaps, blood oozing from their motionless bodies.

The liquid veins dissolved into the air, leaving a cold silence as all the Nohrians gazed at Princess Emily. Her face was un readable as she turned to face her father. Kneeling down, looking him dead in the eyes, she spoke in a cold tone that seemed foreign coming from her lips.

"You will is done, father. They breath no more."


	5. Chapter 4: Servant of Nohr (Act 1)

**I own nothing. Fire Emblem is owned by Nintendo and Dishonoured is owned by Bethesda.**

The Empress of Gristol: (Act 1)

Chapter 4: Servant of Nohr

The courtyard of Krakenburg was deathly silent, the only sound being the flickering flames that illuminated the scene. On the stage were the Nohrian royals and servants, the middle child kneeling to her King. She gazed up at her liege with a distant look in her eyes that was mirrored by her 'loving' father. Garon broke this connection to gaze at the pile of dead bodies that lay on the floor for a brief moment, before he began to walk towards the closest exit. He made no comment, but all the servants loyal to him followed in his wake. As they left, Emily didn't move from her position and her expression stayed the same. Even when the door slammed shut, she didn't flinch or tense a muscle. That only happened when a hand, with a gentle grip, touched her shoulder.

"Darling, are you all right?" The dark-haired royal looked up at the concerned face of her older sister and slowly nodded her head. Camila sighed and gracefully helped her sibling to her feet, embracing her with a tender hug. "There, there, little one. I understand that doing what you did was hard for you. But it's okay. We are all here for you."

"There is no need to pamper her, sister."

The purple haired lady did not break her embrace, but her surprise was evident as she gazed at the speaker. "Leo! How could you say that!?"

"Because the Hoshidans are still alive." Every head turned to him, especially Emily herself as she broke away from Camila. The mage, armed with a smirk, had eyes for only the two servants in the room. "Jakob. Felicia. Heal the prisoners, but do not wake them."

"But Leo!" Piped up Elise, who looked very confused as she observed the fallen fighters. "Staves don't work on the dead!"

"Did you not hear me, sister? They are still alive." He pointed to the body of the crumpled ninja as he continued to speak, annoyance layered deep in his tone. "Use your own stave if you do not believe me."

The youngest princess hesitantly summed her healing apparatus as she approached the fallen. She raised it into the air and as it glowed blue, she gasped in surprise. The blood pool Kaze was soaking in vanished into thin air and all the scrapes of the battle vanished as well. Upon seeing this, the maid and butler joined suit. Within a minute, the blood and bruises of battle where gone from the unconscious Hoshidans; a fact that dumfounded the eldest and youngest siblings.

Even the coat wearing princess was taken off guard. "How…how did you know?"

"Like all of your tricks, sister, you are flashy and predictable. Though to be fair, it was only thanks to time spent with my retainers that I saw through this particular display. They have shown me all the points in the body you can safely skewer and you punctured almost all of them." He turned to his brother in a casual manner, like he wasn't talking about pain and suffering. "I'm surprised you didn't notice, brother. Are the rumors about you knighted lady false?"

"She isn't precise in the art of slaughter," answered the High Prince; who's face looked like a cross between a scowl and surprise.

The dark mage, after absorbing the response, turned to his trickier sister with a smile. "It truly must be the Devil who showers you in luck, for I can't believe that father was fooled so easily. For as soft hearted as you are, you make for a…decent actress."

"Oh, shush, you jerk." Leo rolled his eyes at Elise's words, while the little healer ran to Emily's side with a smile. "Don't listen to him. Your trick was so good, sis. We thought you really killed them, but you saved them instead."

"Yes, you did," agreed Xander; who had also approached his sister. "But why did you spare them? Why didn't you do what Father told you to do?"

Emily had been excepting this, the harsh gaze of her brother's glare that could put fear in almost anyone; though mainly rule breakers like herself. She took a deep breath before she stood up to her sibling. "It's like I said, killing them was pointless. It's standard practice to ransom prisoners, especially when they are of noble stock—"

"Emily—"

"Look, I'm not going to kill anyone unless there's a damn good reason to!" Her yelling caused Camila to try and calm her down, but Emily shrugged her off as she continued; dropping her controlled demeanor for defiance. "I don't care if Father ordered me to do it. It's not right to kill helpless people and I will never do it!"

Adrenaline was pumping through her veins as she finished saying those words to her brother. She panted as the energy coursed through her, while her brother observed her in a critical manner. He did not speak for a good while, but when he did it was with a serious tone. "Mark my words, Emily…One day an act of kindness may be the death of you."

"Perhaps, but I doubt I would die with any regrets."

Xander, for a brief moment, almost cracked a smile. But his stern face remained as he responded, "…Well said." In a respectful tone. He turned to Jakob and Felicia, who instantly knelt before the High Prince. "Take their belongings and bodies to my quarters." He then looked towards Leo. "Brother, I would like you to sneak them out of the city while the rest of us rejoin Father in the throne room. I know I am asking a lot—"

"It's fine, Xander." Interjected the mage as he waved away his brother's words. "Even if I didn't want to help, Elise and Camila always make a fuss whenever I upset Emily and I could do without that."

The said princess grinned at her younger brother as she moved to his side and gave him a one-armed hug. "Awe, don't be like that. You know you love me really. You're just being a good sibling, like when I pointed out your collar was inside out."

"Speaking of which, your bandana is also inside out." To illustrate, the straw-haired royal grabbed the garment and pulled it slightly; showing that the underline of the bandana's pattern had been visible for all this time.

Though she did not blush, the princess did laugh with an embarrassed tone which was echoed by the rest of the siblings. With her free hand, she fixed her garment as she sheepishly said, "Touché, brother. Guess we both dress ourselves poorly." She released her hug, but still looked at Leo. "Seriously, thank you. You really are the best brother a sister could ask for."

"I know," replied the mage, smugly. He walked away in the direction that Felicia and Jakob were heading, both carrying a body over each shoulder. "I'll send your servants to join you when we reach Xander's room. I shall see you all at diner." And with that, Leo left the courtyard.

Camila observed the exit her brother took, smiling blissfully. "He really is a sweet one underneath that frosty exterior, is he not, Elise?"

"Yeah," agreed the little princess as she nodded, vigorously, in agreement. "He's not a complete jerk." The blonde pulled at Emily's coat sleeve. "Come on, sis, let's go meet with Father! We don't want to make him mad."

The dark-haired royal nodded, so the siblings—plus Gunter, who was still on his horse—exited the courtyard and made their way to the throne room. As the party adventured down the first dark corridor, the old veteran trotted alongside his lady. "Emily, I wish to talk about your performance in the battle."

The princess sighed. "Yes, I know I did badly."

"Do you know why?"

"I lost focus because I didn't take the fight seriously. I lost track of how much mana I was using and I let the enemy distract me."

"At least you are aware of your mistakes," assured the High Prince; who was walking ahead of the group.

"That she is," agreed Gunter. "But what did your mistakes almost cost you?"

The coat wearing royal knew exactly what point he was about to make, but it was only then did she realize the full wait of what could have happened. "I almost got Felicia killed."

"Exactly." The grey-haired knight's expression did soften as he saw his mistress comprehend that possibility. "Every time you go into battle, you risk not only your own life but the life of your comrades. Felicia is talented, but that doesn't mean she is invulnerable. Never lose your focus, Emily, for as Princess every solider under your command will be depending on you. I'm not asking you to drop your mischievous nature, but to consider your actions with your allies in mind." She nodded quietly, a slight shame creasing her face. Noticing this, Gunter cracked a smile as he comforted his lady. "Besides that, your overall performance was not awful. The idea of slowing down time to give out secret orders was quite genius."

She smiled, though not as broadly as usual. "Thanks, Gunter."

The old veteran was soon separated from the siblings, for he needed to return his horse to the stables. In the time during his leave till they reached the throne room's doors, Elise chatted with her almost nonstop while Camila doted on the both of them. Xander didn't join in, but this wasn't the first time he chose to stay out of frivolous talk. Emily almost forgot about the voices she had heard whilst touching her new sword, but it stayed in the back of her mind whilst she conversed with her sisters.

Though when they entered the throne room, those thoughts were erased as she drank the sight before her. The room was glowing like it was twilight, such light being very easy on the eyes and gave life to each slab of stone in the room. Speaking of which, between two marble pillars was the throne of the Nohrian Kingdom. Like Nohr, it was mostly of earthly colors and stone besides the decorative back that also contained a twilight theme that was lined in white. The wall behind the throne was covered in spikey branches and brown foliage that converged to a point behind the regal chair; as if it was the bud of the great tree of Nohr. Overall, the dark-haired princess found the décor quite charming in its own way.

Sitting on the purple lined seat was King Garon, who was leaning on the arm on his throne as he watched his children walk the red carpet that led to his seat. He did not speak when they honored him with bows and curtseys, but his eyes were focused on Emily. Even when he began to speak about another topic, his eyes remained on her. "Where is Leo?"

"His retainers volunteered to dispose of the prisoners, Father," explained Xander in his usual manner. "Given their reputation and enthusiasm, he is overseeing the process to make sure they act swiftly before the bodies stink up the castle."

Garon didn't give a single sign like he had heard his oldest son. He could have completely forgotten his own question for he quickly began to address the dark-haired princess. "Emily…despite your disobedient nature that I have heard so much about, you followed my orders. Though I usually except total obedience from all my servants, I shall reward your actions with an answer to your question. Why didn't I ransom the Flame Tribe's Princess?"

The King straightened up and put his hands together, his wrinkly face now set with the same sternness that was given to his oldest son. "I trust that you know the history of the First Dragons?"

"Yes, Father," calmly replied the princess. "We, the royals of Nohr, are descents of the Dusk Dragon while the Hoshidan royal family are descents of the Dawn Dragon. It's why we never got along with Hoshido."

"False, my child." It was in that moment, as he uttered those words, did life seem to return to his face. He stood up from his throne, his towering figuring casting a shadow over his own children, and continued in a righteous manner. "The reason why we fight against Hoshido, why any people with a shred of self-worth should never kowtow to them, is not because of dead deities. No, it's their righteousness."

He made a gesture to the walls of the throne room as he continued on in a proud manner. "When our ancestors arrived in Nohr, it was an uninhabitable quagmire of death. They had to tame the land, conquer the wild life and survive the cruel seasons under a shroud of darkness. Our prosperity was achieved due to our indomitable will and resolve to push the limits of man and bearing the responsibility of what we did to achieve that."

"Hoshido, on the other hand, were graced by fortune and bounty from the very beginning." Malice replaced pride in the Garon's words as he gazed into one of the torches of light. "Like a talentless child, they observed us from afar and stole the credit of our discoveries to construct the nirvana they bask in to this day. But they still had the gall to call us barbarians and low lives, because they could sit around in bathrobes and pondered meaningless drivel while our people had to fight our neighbors to get the land we needed to keep ourselves alive."

"And when we managed to match their glory, they tried to invite us to join their 'better' culture." The anger that the children was seeing was not like what they had seen in the courtyard. It was an indignation that seemed…human. There was no other word for it. "It was the same trick they used on the Flame and Wind Tribe. Join us as allies and we will look after you." He said, in a parody of a Hoshidan accent. "Just surrender your culture and dignity until you are nothing more than a carbon copy of our 'better' culture."

He laughed bitterly and spat at one of the torches, his saliva evaporating quickly from the heat of the light source. "That is why I wanted to kill that Flame Tribe trash!" He roared this, like a proper, healthy lion at Emily. "A people who freely surrenders their liberty to Hoshido is not worth being treated with respect! They can't see the hypocrisy of the 'noble' Hoshidans, the 'pure' people of enlightenment who are too scared of magic so they shun and demonize their own citizens and allies. They call us liars and manipulators, when they train ninja to spy and poison their enemies in broad day light."

Garon was now back in his chair, his rage dying down slightly, as he neared the end of his speech. "There is only one name they use to slander us that holds truth: Conquerors. We take land and bring cultures to their knees, for that is how we survive in this world. But unlike Hoshido, we allow the culture of our beaten foes to remain as long as they agree to contribute to the kingdom at large. We, as rulers, must keep a firm grip to keep their pride in check. I'd rather fight rebels that value their pride than have subservient dogs that are content to add nothing to the world and just be shills for a 'better' culture."

He looked down at Emily, his eyes alive with a life that could be found in Elise, and finished his speech. "Do you finally understand? Though we owe a lot to the Dusk Dragon, it is not for its sake that we must fight Hoshido. We fight to protect our way of life and the ways of all of those we rule. For I refuse to let the accomplishments of our people be tarnished and forgotten because we gave in to a hypocritical country that thinks it is morally superior because they think they are the embodiment of light."

Emily was quite taken aback by her Father's words. For this was the first time that she had been given an actual reason for why Garon was so ruthless to Hoshidans. And despite how he didn't seem apologetic for his actions and views, the princess could understand where his hatred came from. She imagined all the Nohrians she had met on her journey here; the places she had seen, the music she had heard and the food she had eaten. The idea of them being wiped away, arbitrarily removed by a foreign force that deemed it wrong, repulsed her. The princess could see she was not alone as she glanced at Xander, Leo and Camila who had the same reaction that had bled onto their face.

Elise did not seem to be effected by that topic. For it was hope that was burning in her eyes as she gazed at her Father, like she was witnessing a miracle. But the King, as he slumped back onto the throne's arm, was drained of the life and energy he had exhibited during his speech; his eyes becoming as lifeless and hard as stone. This extinguished the joy in the little princess, as if the miracle she had witnessed had just been a mirage in the desert.

The dark-haired princess had no time to decipher this meaning, for the commanding tone of the King rung one more. "Now that you know why we must resist Hoshido, I have a mission for you to perform."

"A mission, father?"

"There is an abandoned fortress perched on the Hoshidan border. I wish to know if the building there remains serviceable, for it was abandoned long ago. You are to travel to the site and inspect the premises. No battle will be required so I except you to complete this task quickly."

Still caught up in her emotions, Emily curtseyed and replied in an excited tone. "I shall leave as soon as possible, Father." The King nodded quietly, stood up and slowly walked down the steps of his throne to reach a side door on the left. The princess watched him leave and, as soon as he closed the door, let out a breath of relief. "Phew…I thought he was going to bite my head off for questioning him…figuratively speaking. I didn't except…well… that."

"Indeed," replied Leo; awe still stuck on his face. "Father hasn't given a speech like that in a long time. I thought you had robbed him of his prowess, Brother."

"I could never rival Father in that way, no matter how hard I try." Calmly admitted the High Prince. "But with how ill he has gotten over the years, it's good to see this his resolve is as strong as ever."

The blonde prince then looked around at his little sister, who was slightly cress fallen. But it was Camila who placed a tentative hand on Elise and asked her, in a gentle tone, "What's the matter, sweetie?"

"It's…" She paused and sighed. "…it's just, for a second, I though Father was back to normal. He was ranting about those stinky Hoshidans, like he used to do, and he had that energy he used to have. Like when he used to play with us."

"Elise," said Leo without his usual smugness. "He's grown older and so have we. He can't give us piggy back rides or cast silly spells with us. We can't ask him to do that anymore."

"I just want him to smile." Tears began to trickle down her face as her voice cracked. "I just want to see him happy again. It's like he doesn't…he doesn't…"

Before Camila could do or say anything, it was the mage who embraced the crying princess; hugging tightly as his own eyes became slightly red. "I know," he whispered mournfully. "I know, Elise." The two youngest siblings continued to hug as their tears continued to fall. The oldest sister cuddled them both and slowly rocked them from side to side, comforting them of the same sadness that she felt. Xander did not join them and so stood alone as his somberness took hold. Emily, who knew little about what Garon had been like, shuffled over to her big brother; quietly respecting the pain of her siblings.

After a while, the embrace was broken and the little blonde's tears had dried up. She hiccupped as she rubbed her eyes, a bittersweet smile now forming. "Thanks, Leo. I needed that."

The straw-haired mage smiled back at his little sister; just as an oily voice popped out of nowhere.

"Why are you two behaving so pitifully?"

Everyone turned their heads to the speaker, as he walked from behind the stone throne. He wore a black and gold-trimmed robe that had the splashes of red, in the form of feathers, that marked a Nohrian Sorcerer. He wore an elaborate golden head ornament that was connected to a half-mask that covered his left eye and had long, greasy hair that looked as oily as his nasally voice sounded.

"I thought that a mage like yourself, Lord Leo, would be beyond such soppy antics." His words drew anger from the straw-haired royal and the petite princess, for they both glowered at the newcomer with obvious dislike.

Emily didn't know who he was, but she desperately wanted to deck him in the face. Xander, sensing this hostility, put a hand on the dark-haired princess as he addressed the oily man. "Hold your tongue, Iago. Unless you have orders from the King, leave us to our privacy."

"I do have orders from the King, Lord Xander." Retorted the sorcerer, but not in a taunting tone like before. He looked at the dark-haired princess, who possessed much cleaner hair than the slimy servant of Garon. "You are to leave at once to inspect the fort. I have already given the details to your guard captain, Gunter, and he is preparing for the journey as we speak."

"What a shame," stated Camila in her usual tone; smiling widely with her eyes closed. "You won't have time to join us for dinner, dear Emily. After I had painstakingly secured a wild bear for tonight's meal." She walked over to her non-blonde sister and patted her on the head. "I'll just have to carry all the meat and cook it over the fire when we have to camp for the night, little one."

"I'm afraid that's not possible."

The purple-haired princess slowly turned to Iago, her smile now gone and her eyes were now slit like snake eyes. "Why ever not, Iago?" She asked in a tone that rung with a false cheeriness.

"Lady Camila, King Garon has tasks that he will reveal to you, and your siblings, at dinner tonight."

The eldest princess sighed. "Oh well." She looked down at her sister, warmth returning to her face, and patted her head once more. "Sorry, darling. It seems that you will be leaving us soon. Don't be sad, for we will be back together again soon and I will have snatched another bear for us all to enjoy."

"I'll look forward to that, sis." Replied Emily, who was secretly glad to be getting some breathing room from her dotting sister. "Just make sure Flora isn't sad while I'm away, will you?" Her sister gave her a questioning look, so she explained. "One of my retainers needs to stay behind to move my belongs into my new quarters. Lilith and Jakob will be needed to look after the horses and, since we are heading near the border, Felicia will be with me in case something bad happens. That is if Father wants me to go all by myself or not."

"Not all by yourself, Emily."

Everyone was surprised by the King's return, who's eyes were shrouded in shadow once more. There was no love in his words, as he said: "Rest assured, I don't intend to send you out there completely defenseless."

He made a gesture, and a newcomer arrived from out of the shadows. He was as tall as the King and was well built, his well-toned muscles visible thanks to his heavy, black berserker armor. He had a bald head and his face was contorted in an ugly expression of permanent distain. The stranger looked at Emily with his misshapen eyes and, while still scowling, greeted her with a curt, "Milady."

"This is Hans." Spoke Garon in a lofty tone as he introduced the thug. "He is a veteran warrior and will ensue no trouble befalls you."

The princess, who was trying not to judge the newcomer harshly, curtseyed once more as she said: "Thank you, Father."

But her open mind was closed quickly, thanks to the words of the brother that moved in to whisper into her ear. "I'd be wary of that man if I were you, Emily…" muttered Xander. "He's a criminal. A murderer and a scoundrel. I arrested him myself, years ago. Father seems to think he's rehabilitated, but I'm not so sure. Be on your guard."

The princess did not respond to her brother, for Hans had moved right in front of her. Not wanting to speak any conflict while in front of the King, she turned on her heals and made her way out of the throne room. And as Hans began to follow her, she placed a hand inside of the coat pocket that housed her retractable blade. And not until she, along with most of her servants, had left the city, made camp near a forest and had seen Hans enter his tent for the night did she release her grip on her weapon.

It had been about a week and a half since the princess' entourage had left the capital, each party member riding a horse as they trotted the beaten path to the border. It may be the fact that Emily was just on edge whenever Hans was not in her field of view, but the land scape of Nohr seemed to be drearier than she could ever imagine. Particularly after they had made it around the tallest mountain in all of Nohr, for there was no more brown fields or lively forests. Stone became more prominent than before, but it lost its color and character the more they ventured on.

The dark-haired princess did not have the will to sing a rousing shanty for most of the trip, which had been noted by her servants and guard captain. On the first night, when Hans was asleep, she confessed her worries to her friends. In response, Gunter also kept an eye on the stranger; though he did seem to know the bald man. Jakob, Felicia and Lilith did their best to cheer up their mistress all throughout the journey in their own ways.

Jakob was his ever dutifully self who took care of all the small problems that tried to bother his lady. Usually, his fussiness and his attempts to do things that Emily could do by herself annoyed the royal; though she never openly complained because of how sincere her butler's dedication was. But she had no qualms with his dotting when her new shoes finally gave her blisters as she guided her horse to shelter from a rain storm. She quite enjoyed that evening spent in a cave, while Jakob tended to her blisters, massaged her shoulders and fed her fruit like she was a goddess.

Felicia did not try to perform any domestic duties during the journey, which was a relief because—frankly— she was a terrible maid. This did not mean she was shirking her responsibilities, for the brunet continued her main task she used to perform at the Northern Fortress: chatting Emily's ear off. The topics ranged from mundane observations of their surroundings to tales and tidbits from both of their lives. And even though tons of their chatter were repeats from the past, the princess enjoyed talking to the peppy Ice Tribe Scion.

But when Felicia was occupied, Lilith was the next port of call for conversation. These times were usually when Lilith was cooking the parties' meals or when she looked after the horses when they stopped to rest. The blue-haired stable girl, despite being the newest servant in the princess' service, was quite special to Emily. It wasn't just the fact that she had more knowledge about the outside world than the other servants, but she shared many passions with the princess; like animals, armory/forge work, music and most important of all…mischief. For the trickster princess never really shared or planned ideas with Felicia, Gunter, or any of her siblings; even Elise. But thanks to Lilith, Emily had a partner in crime that she could scheme with without the fear of being told to 'grow up'.

In fact, as the landscape they traversed became more barren, the princess shared her observation about the dreariness of their surroundings with the stable girl. "Yes, this is quite unpleasant scenery," replied the blue haired girl, dolefully. "Thankfully, this only pertains to the land that surrounds the Bottomless Canyon."

"The Bottomless Canyon?"

"It's the natural boundary dividing Nohr and Hoshido." Explained Gunter, who was riding ahead of the group; while Jakob was dogging Hans' footsteps. "Normally, you'd go around the canyon by the north. But the fort that King Garon wants surveyed lies near the Canyon itself." He observed the twisted surroundings, a look of disgust was creasing his aging face. "I truly despite this place. Something about the land around here just isn't right. The sky here is always dark and foreboding, and lightning strikes all who fly across." As if it heard its cue, the sky flashed white along with a clap of thunder.

The dark-haired princess, forgetting about the stranger in their midst, felt a rush of excitement at these words; as if some childish part of her was yearning for adventure to make up for all the years kept inside the confines of the Northern Fortress. Though this was tempered by caution when the party came in sight of the Bottomless Canyon. That was when the full blast of its disturbing aura was felt, for the rocks looked like they had been scalded by the fires of Hell and the dark bottom truly looked like there was nothing to stop you from falling for eternity.

The princess gulped, which was noticed by the old veteran. He gave his liege a ruffle smile, which she returned with an embarrassed chuckle and a frivolous remark, saying: "Well, at least this is more exciting than sneaking around that fortress for the fortieth time."

Gunter laughed as he remembered those days where he and the servants would search for the mischiefs little royal. "That certainly puts things in perspective, milady." He chuckled for a bit more, before he went back to business by addressing the whole group. "We should all dismount here. The hanging bridges of the Canyon may not take the weight of the horses."

The party of six disembarked from their steeds, each gathering the tools of their trade from their saddles while Lilith began to tether them to a withered old tree. Jakob, after he had fitted himself with his knives, gave Emily a fresh bandana to replace the one she had been wearing up till now. She made sure to not put it on inside out, and after that she checked if her retractable sword was still functional. Felicia, meanwhile, was applying a magic summoning seal on a pair of healing staves that were now resting against a tree. She raised her hand and one of the staves flashed from the trunk to her palm in an instant, then she sent it back the same way without any problems. Hans, the stranger, was just standing silently with his giant, steel axe; whilst Gunter was sheathing a sword and strapping his own axe to his belt.

With her coat's hood raised, Emily walked in front of the group to address her fellow Nohrians. "Okay, everyone," she begun in a clear voice; despite the howling winds that blew through the Canyon behind her. "Our mission is simple and shouldn't take more than a couple of hours. We need to inspect an abandoned fort to see if it is still useable. Lilith, Felicia, I want you both to look after the horses while the rest of us cross the Canyon. Once we've reached the other side, we'll send Jakob back to confirm our safety. If he doesn't come back within ten minutes of our departure, I want you to get out of here to get reinforcements." The two maids nodded, secretly hoping that it wouldn't come to that.

"I presume that you want me to return to your side after that, Lady Emily?" Inquired the butler calmly.

"Yes, because if you don't we will assume that someone has attacked you." Even though she suggested danger, the only thing she was worried about was the bald man that was coming with her. She turned around and began to walk to the Canyon, whilst giving a parting greeting: "See you two in an hour or so."

Gunter, with a hand on his sword's handle, followed his liege first. Hans was next and Jakob fell into line behind the Barbarian. Together, they walked along the cliffs of the creepy canyon until they found the large, creaky rope bridge that hung above the bottomless drop. The princess did not hesitate as she stepped onto the panels of wood and began to walk upon them in a slow, cautious manner. It didn't shake as violently as you would imagine, even when four adults were making their way across it.

As they reached a tall, thin plateau that stood in the middle of the canyon; Emily managed to spy the fortress that they had come to inspect. Her first observation was that its architecture didn't look Nohrian. It had multiple roofs that hung over the ground instead of it being confined on the wall that supported it. No, not just walls but red pillar as well. And Nohr did not paint pillars nor did they use them in the construction of forts.

The alarm bells were ringing in the Princess' head. She gestured for her allies to stop with her right hand, while she raised her mark hand to use a spell. Her eyes' irises sharpened as most of the color she could see drained away. This 'Dark Vision' now allowed her to see certain things through solid surfaces that were highlighted in yellow. Like the people who were inhabiting the 'abandoned fort' and the person who was bearing down on their position.

Running past the dead trees that stuck out of the plateau was a Hoshidan samurai, who's sword was raised in anticipation for combat. "Do not advance any farther, soldiers of Nohr!" Barked the warrior.

While Emily placed a hand on her sword, Ganglari, she began to count the enemy soldiers that had crawled out of the wood work. She counted twelve men in total, six of them were archers and the one who led them was dressed up like a ninja. That man was standing by the fort and on the edge of the canyon, addressing Emily's party in a threatening tone. "I am Omozu, border guard of Hoshido! Crossing that bridge is a violation of our border treaty! Turn back at once, or we'll be forced to attack!"

The dark-haired princess could not describe how confused she was at this news. She turned to Gunter, whispering: "This is the right fort, right?"

"If Iago's directions are to be believed," responded the veteran, mutedly. "I am quite sure we followed his directions perfectly."

"But look at that fort. That is clearly a Hoshidan building. And why would Father send me to a fort over the border, when he must know of the treaty?"

Jakob, who had moved to his mistress' side, tapped her gently as he queried: "What is the plan, Lady Emily."

"The plan is to scarper," replied the princess. "We aren't here to fight. We'll report this back to the King before things gets messy."

"A wise decision, Lady Emily." complemented Gunter.

"Who asked you, old man?!"

Before anyone could respond, Hans had charged past them with his axe raised; laughing maniacally. "Die, scumbags." The samurai, despite having been battle ready, could do nothing as the bald man swung his weapon with the speed of lightening. Blood splattered over the grounds of the plateau as the severed head of the samurai fell into the Bottomless Canyon.

Omozu roared in anger. "You will pay for this!" He then gestured his remaining men, signaling them to prepare for battle. "Soldiers of Hoshido, hear me! Do not leave a single Nohrian alive!"

Hans kicked aside the corpse of his fallen enemy, his mismatched eyes gleaming with glee as he turned them to the small fort that was positioned at the end of the bridge. His joy was robbed from him, as Emily bashed the pommel of Ganglari into his bald chrome.

"What the fuck are you playing at, Hans!" Yelled the princess. "I said we weren't going to attack, you pillock! We were not sent here to kill people!"

"Speak for yourself, weakling."

Before the Princess could reply, she heard a familiar voice call for her and a set of noisy footsteps were shaking the bridge they had just crossed. She turned around for a second, seeing Lilith and Felicia—who was covered in blood—and in that time Hans began to bolt to the next bridge on the other side of the plateau.

"Oh no you don't!" Emily casted her time spell with a flick of her wrist. To her surprise, the bald man continued to run at normal speed; despite that the canyon had been drained of the little color that it did have. Seeing this, the princess decided to cast a more powerful spell. Her mark began to glow as shadows began to envelop her entire body, the same hand that had grabbed the sword away from Leo spouting from her shoulders. It lunged after Hans and managed to grab his leg. Surprised, the Berserker cried out in fear as he was dragged across the ground and then lifted into the air. He dangled in front of Emily, who was cloaked in shadow, before she swung his entire body at a nearby husk of a tree. It still stood when he collided into the wood, head first. The hand disappeared as the bald man slumped down the tree's side, unconscious.

The usage of this spell drained Emily of all her mana, meaning that time had returned to normal. She heard the brunet squeaking in surprise, a similar sentiment given by all of her allies at the sudden shift of Hans' state of consciousness. But before they could ask her what had happened, an arrow landed in the dead tree. Without the need for words, the five Nohrians began to move to safety. To their right was another bridge that lead to an adjacent plateau, which had another small fort that seemed empty.

The princess, after hoisting the unconscious Hans onto her shoulders, ran after her allies as the Hoshidan Archers continued to fire at their position. Being too far away, there was no chance of them hitting the Nohrians, however, when they reached the fort they found that it was locked. If that wasn't bad enough, it was positioned in front of another bridge in such a way that it was impossible to cross unless they could get through the locked door.

Fortunately, the Hoshidans didn't try to charge their position. Instead, samurai were now blocking the bridge they had crossed; waiting for the Nohrians to attack them for their only means of escape. Emily dropped Hans onto the floor, cursing his name at the top of her lungs. "What was this pillock thinking?! And how did he manage to resist my time spell?"

"He did what?"

"He wasn't effected when I slowed down time," explained the princess to her butler. "I had to use my Shadow Hand to knock him out." She looked down at the bald man, her mind churning like gears. "I thought only those with Dragon Blood could resist that spell."

"I suspect that he may have Dragon Blood, Lady Emily." Replied Gunter as he scowled at the treacherous Nohrian. "Garon gives it to soldiers who have sworn totally fealty to him."

"Never mind that," interrupted Felicia. "Lady Emily, we were attacked by Hoshidan ninjas! They tried to kill us and there were too many of them, so we had to abandon the horses. We couldn't get past them, so we came to you."

"Bastards!" Cursed the coat wearing royal. "They said we were breaking the treaty, but they had soldiers on our side of the border." She cast that thought from her mind, focusing on more important matters. "Are you two alright?"

Lilith nodded. "Felicia managed to save me from any injuries. But they destroyed most of our summon-able staves. We only have two left…" She placed them against the locked door, her face strained with distress.

The Princess looked at her subjects, realizing that they were in real danger. If they stayed where they were, ninjas would probably climb over the locked fort and attack them; allowing the samurai to attack their flank. If they charged the samurai, they would be set upon by arrows and shuriken from both directions.

Knowing that her life, and the life of her friends, depended on her actions chilled her to bone. The training she had done for so many years had not prepared her for the responsibility that now weighed on her. But the words of Xander and Gunter, her two battle mentors, filled her brain. She was a Princess of Nohr. She was the commander of her forces. She could do this.

With new found confidence, she turned and observed the battlefield. With her naked eye, she could see that the Hoshidan forces were concentrated on the Northside of this battlefield. There were only four near the fortress; two archers, a samurai and Omozu. A mischievous smile creased her bandana as a plan formed in her mind, for she could sense a dragon vein.

The two samurai who guarded the bridge observed the Nohrians, waiting for them to attack so that their archers could pick them off. They didn't move, not even when one of them—who wore a hooded coat—began to approach their general direction with her hands in the air. Only one of the warriors watched her, while the other one kept his eye on the rest.

Emily said nothing as she moved forward, her path taking her further to the right side of the plateau. She walked into range of the archers when she reached the edge, her hands still raised. They couldn't see the grin on her face, or the Dragon Vein that was under her feet. So, when a fireball suddenly flew from her hands, they were taken by surprise as it collided with their side of the canyon.

But before the ground itself began to shake, time slowed to a crawl for everyone in the world; except for Emily and the four Nohrians who were holding onto Hans. Without missing a step, the princess began to teleport to the south side of the plateau while her comrades carried the Berserker to the north. When they had reached the north dragon vein, the dark-haired royal activated another one in the south. She allowed time to return to normal, in order for her use of the veins to take effect. From both points, a bridge made of stone shot out of the canyon wall and connected the plateau to the Hoshidan's side of the border.

Omozu, while he and his troops tried to stay upright despite she sudden earthquake, gapped at the bridges that had popped out of nowhere. "Gods! Did you see what just happened to the cliffs! Who—" He was forced to pause as time stood still once again. The princess crossed the southern bride, after recharging her mana, while the rest of her group crossed the northern one. When they both reached the other side, she used about half of her magic to extend the spell. The last thing she saw was her allies passing the forest that was beside the fort, carrying the sleeping Hans as they approached the flank of the Hoshidan forces.

Emily, meanwhile, used her time to disarm the four Hoshidans; throwing their bows, katanas and shuriken into the canyon. As she prized the weapon from them, she temporally released them from her spell; but only for a moment. By the time the spell had run its course, she was in the position to throw the first punch at an unexpecting archer.

"—are we dealing with!? Hey!" Omozu was quick to realize that it was the hooded Nohrian who had just punched one of his allies. He reached for his weapon to discover that it was gone. The samurai did the same, though he was given a haymaker before he could defend himself. The ninja and the remaining archer fell in line and dropped into martial arts positions, while their enemy raised her fists into a boxing stance.

"Do you mind surrendering?" Asked the royal as she bounced on the tip of her toes. "I really didn't want to start this fight, but one of my officers disobeyed me. I'm sorry that he killed one of your people, but I can't guarantee that my forces will be able to spare the rest of your troops." As she said this, the sound of combat suddenly appeared from the north; and none of the cries of surprise were from her own people.

Omozu looked at the two samurai who had been guarding the bridge, who were glancing between the two fights that were unfolding before them. "Don't just stand there!" Roared the Hoshidan commander. "Get over her and help us kill this Nohrian scum!"

"Well shit." Sighed Emily. "Thought you Hoshidans were peace lovers. That said, you did break the border treaty first by sending ninjas into Hoshido. Might want to reconsider who's scum after I've knocked you unconscious." The ninja let out a battle cry as he and the archer charged at the princess; while the two samurai started to cross the wooden bridge.

Omozu unleashed a spinning kick that Emily easily ducked under. The archer followed up with a sidekick that forced the Nohrian to move back. She made it look like she was about to fall into the Bottomless Canyon. Instead, she teleported behind the two and grabbed the archer by the waist. She threw him away from the cliff side and onto the floor. Emily wasn't able to follow up with a quick kick, for Omozu unleashed another spinning kick that hit her left side.

She stumbled away, her fist still raised, and the ninja continued his assault. He threw a couple of jabs that Emily managed to parry by sharply tapping the blows away. The Hoshidan then feinted another strike, when in reality he wanted to grab the lapel of the Hoshidan's coat. The Princess spotted this and managed to grab her enemy's wrist. She pulled him closer, throwing him off balance, and smashed her head into his. Omozu cried out in pain, stunned by the intense blow, and couldn't prevent Emily from unleashing two uppercuts on his gut. He staggered back, blood trickling from his mouth, as he looked around for his comrade. Seeing that he was distracted, the princess landed a final right hook that knocked the Hoshidan commander out cold.

Emily took a deep, sharp breath as she let the adrenaline flow though her body. She looked around to find the last enemy, in time to see that a shuriken was flying towards her. The Princess managed to dodge the attack. She drew her blade, wincing as its boiled her blood, and looked in the direction the attack had come from.

A new group of Hoshidans were before her, along with the archer who was cowering behind them. There were two samurai, not the same ones from before, and two soldiers who were riding on white, flying horses known as Pegasus. Leading them was another ninja, who was giving off a fierce, fiery aura. He had red, slicked back hair and wore a black mask. He looked at Emily with his only eye, the other one was closed and had a scar across it.

"You're the leader of these troops?" Asked the ninja in a gruff, gravelly voice; who then let off a laugh as he sized Emily up. "You're a little girl."

"Real charmer, aren't you," retorted the Princess in a snarky tone; whilst her heart began to beat like a drum. "Got a name, handsome?"

"My name is Saizo. I've come to claim your life." His marked eye lid opened to reveal a white, sightless eye. In that instance, he almost disappeared into thin air; when in reality he was just moving at blinding speed. Emily, instinctively raised Ganglari, when—

"I won't allow it!"

The ninja was forced back, as a beam of red energy cut through the air in front of the Princess. Saizo, as he landed on his feet, looked to his left to see four Nohrians charging across the stone bridge; while one of them was flying over it on a wyvern. Leading this group was a blonde-haired man who was atop of an armored horse. "This must be their real commander," commented the ninja; as he could feel the authority that this man brought.

Emily, meanwhile, looked at the newcomers with jubilation in her eyes; particularly for the man who had stopped at her side. "Xander!" She cried, happily. "How did you know we were in trouble?!"

Before he could respond, the rest of her loving siblings joined her side. Leo, atop his horse with a tome and sword on his belt, was smirking at his older sister. "We've arrived just in time. Your luck never runs out, does it, Sister?"

"Are you alright dear?" Asked Camila as her mount hovered in the air. "I was so worried about you."

"We're all here for you, Emily!" Piped up Elise, who's pony had snuck into the space between her brother's steeds.

The sight of her family took away all of her worries. "Thank you, everyone." Her voice actually cracked as she said those words, but she did not care. That was until she noticed that Saizo, from the corner of her eye, was readying his blade. "Guys, great to see you and all, but we're still under attack!"

Her older sister did not seem troubled by this fact, for her eyes were closed like she was contemplating something. But when she spoke, it was with a tone she had not heard for three years. "Who dares to attack my beloved sister?! I'll have all their heads on a platter!"

"Camila, I'm fine," responded the princess in a slightly apprehensive tone.

"But, darling…" she replied; smiling wildly. "…it's the thought that counts!" At that moment, both her and Leo summoned tomes from their belts. The two samurai were bombarded by both branches and a torrent of hell fire, curtesy from the Dark Knight and the Malig Knight. The latter, after wounding the footmen, pulled out a steel axe as her wyvern darted through the air towards the Pegasus riders. Before they could respond, the heads of their steeds were chopped off in a gory display. Their creatures now headless, they dropped from the sky like bricks. One of the samurai, who had survived the branches that had punctured his skin, raised a hand in a bid for mercy from the purple-haired princess. This was promptly chopped off, much to the disgust of Emily.

"Fucking hell, Camila! Don't kill them!"

"Oh, all right," cooed Camila; whilst the samurai's friend tended to his bloody wound.

Elise trotted next to the dark-haired princess, seemingly unfazed by the display of brutality. "You've never seen our big sis on the battlefield, have you? I was shocked when I first saw her do something like that. She's usually much cleaner—Watch out!"

In that moment of hesitation, the archer had run past Camila and was charging at Xander; a katana pointed directly at the High Prince's stomach. The blonde only saw the attacker when Elise had pointed him out. With Siegfried in hand, he was more than equipped for this lowly soldier.

But Emily, from her position, saw that her brother was in mortal peril. Out of instinct, she teleported in front of the soldier and swung Ganglari though the air. The magical blade cut through his sword like paper. He barely had time to register what was happening before his head was rendered from his shoulders. His blood splattered over her coat, which caused the Princess to realize what she had done.

She had taken her first life.

It had been so easy. She didn't mean to do it, but it happened without it even crossing her mind. A person's existence, taken away by a single swing of blade.

Nausea took hold as her adrenaline died down. She placed a hand on her coat, the blood smearing off onto her fingers. Looking at the blood on her finger tips made Emily feel like she was about to vomit. Her nerves were so shot that she didn't notice that someone was shaking her shoulder. It was not until Gunter began to shout in her ear did she turn to the old veteran, her body shaking violently.

"Emily, we need to get moving! Hoshidan reinforcements are coming!"

She slowly nodded and began to move in the direction Gunter was pushing her. He kept her steady as they crossed the stone bridge she had made, Ganglari still in her hand. In fact, it was thanks to the boiling sensation under her skin that she managed to return her focus to their situation.

"W-where is Lilith? And the others?"

"They went on ahead, along with your siblings. Thanks to your plan, we managed to flank the rest of the enemy forces without any casualties."

That last word brought back the image of the headless corpse she had just made. The sickness returned just as they passed the tree and it came with a vengeance. Her hand clutched for the tree as she felt the saliva in her mouth build as the bile worked its way up her throat. The princess puked over the tree's trunk. The first wave left her shaky, but Gunter supported her as her stomach forced more sick out of her mouth.

The old veteran pulled out a vial from his belt, as the princess gasped and gaged as the third wave of bile passed. "This potion should stop the nausea. Here..." He pulled out the stopper and gently fed his concoction to his liege; who tried to stay as still as possible despite her shakiness. As the liquid slithered down her throat, all of her symptoms started to fade away; though nothing could instantly heal the guilt she still felt.

She soon stood up under her own strength, whilst spitting to rid the horrid taste from her mouth. She turned to her mentor, struggling to find the words to say…anything.

"Emily, I understand what you did was hard for you. Believe me, I do. But if we stay here, we could perish." He looked back at the Hoshidan fortress for a brief second, before turning back to his lady. "The others are waiting for us! I promised Xander that I would get you out of here safely."

In the same way his words had triggered her vomiting, Gunter name dropping her brother seemed to give Emily clarity. She had done that to save his life. It had to be done. She shook her head, punched her side and gave the veteran an expression of confidence and stability. Without a word, she followed him back onto the bridge that would led them to their friends.

As they ran, Gunter turned back his head to Emily; a gruff smile spread across his aged face. "Let's hope we never have to come to this place ever again." That was the last time she ever saw his face.

"Don't worry—you won't be around for much longer."

Gunter reacted the best he could to avoid the axe that bore down upon him. Despite his age and being at a disadvantage, he managed to back step safely onto one of the bridge's boards. Unfortunately, the axe that he avoided stuck the plank he had landed on and split it in two. He didn't scream as he fell through the bridge, as if the shock of it all had robbed him of his voice. If his lungs did manage to recover, it was too late to give his last words in anger or sorrow; for the darkness of the canyon swallowed him.

"NO! GUNTER!"

It couldn't be. This couldn't be real. She stepped away from the broken plank, the place where Gunter…

Was this a nightmare? The world around her was spinning, but it wasn't dissolving away into the mist that permeated the Void. Emily wanted the Outsider to appear, or any sign that this wasn't real. That Gunter wasn't…

"Aww, did I knock your babysitter into the ditch?"

The Princess became very aware of the cold air as she began to recognize the voice. The sky, which had been thundering all this time, let loose a lightning bolt that illuminated the bald scalp of Hans. His ugly face was twisted into a maniacal smile as he spun the axe he had used to kill Gunter in his hand. "Here…" he jeered. "…you can meet him at the bottom!"

He charged forward, laughing like a hyena, and raised his weapon above his head. He swung for the Princess' neck, who at that point hadn't moved a muscle.

The steel axe handle split in two, leaving Hans with the handle of a broken weapon. What caused this damage was due to Emily's right hand. Not her marked hand, but her previously unblemished right hand. Now, a silver, metallic liquid had formed around her hand to form a long, sharp blade. The steel axe had collided with the stationary silver blade, and now the head of Han's weapon had fallen into the canyon with Gunter.

That was all she could think about, her mentor…her dead mentor. And all she cared about was that his murderer was standing before her, unarmed and helpless. She didn't even react as she drew Ganglari with her left hand, her boiling blood paling in comparison of the fury that she felt. She didn't even care that the silver metal had crawled under her skin and had traveled up her arm; forming a horned mask that matched her monochrome armor. All she knew, at that moment, was that she wanted to make him suffer.

She jumped into the air and delivered a spinning, overhead slash to Han's left side; cutting into his armor to the point she drew blood. Landing on the boards, she then raised her right arm forward. The silver metal sprang forward and skewered Hans' his already bleeding left side; his scream of pain lost in the thunder that wrung through the Canyon. She moved forward away from the broken board, pushing the blade further in until her hand could have touched his gaping wound. With Ganglari still in hand, she crushed his nose with the pommel and retracted the silver metal from the wound. It left a smaller hole than you would think, but it still gushed the amount of blood that you would expect. As he staggered back, the silver grew a black metal as if formed into a giant, toothy mouth. The new jaw opened, revealing the same water that was used to skewer Rinkah and Kaze. This time, it was just a giant, turbulent ball of power that smacked Hans with the force of a tsunami.

He fell back onto the boards, howling with pain and misery, as the silver and black metal disappeared from Emily. Her rage was still present, but she had gained back some of her senses. "Why did you kill Gunter!" She roared, brandishing Ganglari at his throat. "Tell me! Or I'll cut you open, here and now!"

"Alright, alright!" He said in a muffled voice, as he held his bleeding nose. "I was order by King Garon to start a fight with the Hoshidans. And to kill you if you weren't captured by them!"

"What!?"

"That's all I know, I swear!"

Emily's mind was a maelstrom of anger and confusion; as that piece of information threw her grieving thoughts into a spiral of mixed, powerful emotions. She didn't notice when Ganglari started to vibrate in her hand, not until it suddenly shot upwards. Unlike Gunter, she screamed as the gift from Garon dragged her into the air.

And she continued to scream as the sword plummeted into the darkness; a sound heard by her family members that she will never see again.


	6. Chapter 5: Victim of… (Act 1)

**I own nothing. Fire Emblem is owned by Nintendo and Dishonoured is owned by Bethesda.**

The Empress of Gristol (Act 1)

Chapter 5: Victim of…

It was as if her nightmares had become reality. Emily was falling through the air, her hand glued to a sword that was dragging her into the abyss, like those times in the Void. She was passing by the spiky walls of the Bottomless Canyon that had been hidden in shadow, only visible to the damned souls that had plunged to their death.

The Princess wondered if she was already dead. By this point, all of the trauma she had endured had made her numb and her vision was blinded by a bright light. She didn't know where it was coming from, but it was glowing brighter and brighter. Emily closed her eyes, resigning herself to her fate.

Something collided with Emily, forcing her to open her eyes. This only ended up blinding her, but she could feel a set of teeth biting at the arm that was holding Ganglari. It wasn't painful nor did the creature that was biting her pull her arm in any direction. Despite that, the Princess's momentum and direction was changed drastically. Her vision was then burned once more as more light began to shine from multiple directions. The next thing she knew, Emily was rolling on her side on a gravely surface; gasping for breath as confusion replaced her apathy.

It felt like an eternity as she lay upon the solid floor, as she waited for her vision to return and for all her emotions to return. Though the latter came back like a flash flood, a mix of emotions that still left her unable to calm down. The events surged through her mind like a frenzied clip show; the Hoshidans, her first kill, her siblings, her father's betrayal and Gunter's…

Her peace of mind was found as her eyes returned to normal; as if her desire, her hope, that this was all just a long, twisted dream managed to pull her back from insanity. Now comforted, she tried to move her body in very small ways. She stretched her legs, cleared her throat and flexed her fingers—

She sat up, looking at her empty left hand. The hand that had been holding her father's gift, Ganglari. Confused, the princess looked around to see where the glowing sword had vanished to. Alas, there was no trace of it. But Emily's search had made her conscious of her surroundings.

The dark-haired royal was no longer in the Bottomless Canyon, nor was she in a place that looked like Hoshido…well, at least to her knowledge. From what she had heard, the eastern kingdom was more colourful than Nohr. Their fields were green instead of brown, their mountains bore more snow and the sky was the ideal shade of blue.

This place, wherever it was, did not fit that description in the slightest. She couldn't compare this location to Hoshido very well, but she could see similarities in her surrounding to her home country of Nohr. Its colours weren't as earthy, but they both had a heavy reliance on stone. For example, despite thinking she had fallen on gravel, Emily was sitting on a grey bricked road. A road that lead to other roads that were joined together to form a grid.

As she stood, she spun around on her heels to observe the walls that enclosed the large, spacious area she had found herself in. This was where she noticed one of the factors that separated the architecture from Nohr: The Metal. The walls were constructed mostly from iron and steel. There were bricks, but only in the lookout towers. The metal tended for dark colours, but unlike the clean, sharp edge that Nohr preferred this metal was twisted and jagged.

Another comparison to be made was that besides the roads, there were canals as well. Cheve, one of the countries Nohr had conquered had these as well. But these canals weren't as clean or calm, for the plant life seemed to populate its damp stones and waters; giving the water a greenish hue.

That was not the only place where plant life grew, for on the north side of this space was a dais; a raised, square platform that had three sets of steps leading up to it. On the dais were planted trees, the only green foliage around that didn't mingle with the water. On the far end of the dais was a simple, wooden chair and behind that chair were two doors the led to the castle that was looming in the north.

The overall picture was wet and oily, but not in a sickly sense. The dampness didn't look like the victim of rain, but the inevitability of the sea crashing against the shore. The oil wasn't black and gunky, it was the sheen of the iron and metal that stood strong in its own twisted way. If Nohr had a natural grunginess to its landscape, this place had an engineered quality that was wrought with a natural flaw that was present in the people who made it. While Nohr was shrouded in darkness, this location was just overcast with dreary clouds that hampered the relentless assault of the sun.

Emily felt a strange sense of nostalgia as she looked around, wondering if it was just the reminders of Nohr that caused this feeling. The answer, however, wasn't based in reality…but her nightmares. This architecture had been the disjointed backdrop to those times in the Void when she wasn't traversing a memory; drifting in the fog with other landmarks. Like a golden cat statue, a sign with a painted dog and that damn letter…

The princess shook her head and bit her lip, ridding her mind of that image. Though a part of her knew that if this was a nightmare, then it would appear to her soon. But after absorbing in her empty surroundings, she was starting to wonder is she really was asleep. If this was the Void, then she wouldn't be able to say a word unless it's something from her past; for her voice was robbed of the pleasure or adding new reactions to her visions besides her frightened expression.

She took a deep breath, and—

"Lady Emily! Are you alright!?"

The dark-haired royal couldn't help but squeal when those words suddenly sounded behind her. She spun around, her surprise turned to horror as she started to scream. To be honest, she was overreacting due to all of her pent up emotions. The being that had snuck up behind her wasn't scary…just weird. She realised this, after tripping on a gap in the road and landing square on her bottom.

The being was very small and was hovering off the ground, thanks to a golden orb that it was perched on. Emily thought that it was a bird at first, a really odd looking bird that look exactly like the one she had looked after many years ago. But seeing that it was floating on an orb, what the Princess thought were scaly wings were just fins. This white and blue creature wasn't a bird that looked like it was part wyvern, it was completely draconian…and it was wearing a white handkerchief.

Emily blinked, as the creature moved its jaws and a familiar voice came out. "I'm sorry, Lady Emily! I didn't mean to scare you." The Princess looked into its yellow eyes and, as she raised her vision, saw a giant red diamond that looked like an enlarged version of—

"Lilith?"

The little create smiled down at the Princess. "Yes, Lady Emily. It's me." She floated down on her orb so she was level with the fallen royal, sincerity brimming in her yellow eyes. "I knew this day would come…" she began in an accepting tone. "…The truth is, Emily, I'm not a human. I am a dragon. One of the last, pure dragons from the time where the First Dragons lived physically in your world."

There was a pause as the two beings looked at each other, the human giving the dragon a dead pan stare. She then slowly nodded and let out a low whistle. "You know; this should be a dream. This shouldn't be happening. It can't be real…" But she knew that it couldn't be the case. She could talk freely, and ever since she received the mark her dream voice had been taken by the Void. And every timed she dreamed, she would be in the Void. This was real life. The Princess, to occupy her mind from accepting this truth, threw out a basic question: "W-where are we?"

"This is a world parallel to the one in which you live, Lady Emily."

"…So…it's a parallel universe?"

Lilith, despite lacking many human facial features, looked unmistakably amused by these words. "No, Lady Emily. This world and your world exist in the same universe of time…Look, if I try and explain it to you properly, both our heads will explode. To put it simply, it's a pocket of space and time called the Astral Plane. The First Dragons have allowed us access to this part of the Astral Plane."

The Princess could have absorbed all of this information faster if she wasn't trying to suppress her emotions and memories, but she got the gist in due time. With the pieces in her mind, she slowly spoke her conclusion aloud. "So…you were a dragon all along? And, correct me if I'm wrong, you're the… 'bird' I found in the stables?"

Lilith nodded by tilting her orb back and forth. "Yes. I was wounded when I was flying near the Northern Fortress. I only survived thanks to your care, so I used my power to become a human so I could serve you; to repay your kindness."

Emily let out a chuckle. "You're lucky that none of the stable hands found you first. The stable master would have tried to mount you on a wall. But back to…this." She waved her arm at their surroundings. "Years later…Ganglari drags me into the Canyon. You jump in after me, transformed back into a dragon and brought us…here."

She repeated the nodding motion. "I opened up a portal on the canyon wall after I grabbed you. I didn't want to risk being stuck by lightning while you were still in my jaw. While you were recovering, I disposed of the cursed sword and flew out of the Canyon." The little creature let out a sigh. "Unfortunately, what I feared came to past. I got hit by electricity and I had to create a portal on the plateau. We are still in danger from the Hoshidans and I don't have the strength to close the portal behind us."

"Wait, what do you mean you don't have the strength? Aren't you a dragon? Can't you just breath fire at them?"

Lilith smiled; but this time, Emily saw that doing so was causing her pain. She noticed how her tiny claws were digging into her orb as the dragon spoke: "The act of casting off my human form drained me of most of my power. Even then, my flames wouldn't be enough to stop a large number of enemies. Look at me, I'm tiny and I need this orb to move around. If I ever lost this, I would have to crawl everywhere."

The two of them shared a morose laugh, as they became painfully aware at how vulnerable they were. One was nearly drained of her strength and the other was at her wits end. The Princess couldn't even see where the portal was, the unclose-able gateway to a pack of warriors who wanted them dead. And right now, she couldn't tell if they were Hoshidan or Nohrian…besides…

Emily pushed herself onto her feet, while Lilith continued to sink to the ground; her grip on her orb slackening. The Princess, as she looked around, queried the tired dragon. "Hey, Lilith, do you remember that joke? About the two soldiers who hid in a barn?"

The little dragon looked up with a puzzled look. "No, Lady Emily. How does it go?"

"I don't know. I'll tell you it when I see you again." She pulled her retractable sword from her coat, as her eyes fixed onto an open gatehouse that was in the closest wall. Her suspicions were confirmed when the orb shot in front of her, its rider wide eyed and terrified.

"Don't do it, Emily!" She yelled, as her orb started to shake in her grip. "They'll kill you…" Lilith coughed, trying to keep high in the air despite her obvious fatigue. However, one of her claws finally relinquished her perch as her strength continued to sap. She started to fall, but she gently landed in the arms of the dark-haired princes; who was smiling gently at the little dragon.

"They're more likely to kill the strange creature riding an orb, rather than a potential, profitable hostage." Explained the royal as she laid down her servant on the floor; patting her softly on the head. "That is if I meet them back in the real world, and not when they're trying to make sense of parallels worlds. Besides, Xander and the others wouldn't leave us like this. There's a high chance of me meeting them than the enemy." As she finished her argument, she rolled the orb to the tired dragon. "Please, rest up and gather the strength to close the portal. I will be safe, but you're not and I am not losing…"

Her words faded away, the truth of the situation having managed to creep around her denial. She prevented it from appearing on her face as she smiled down at her loyal servant. But the moment she turned away and started to walk towards the gatehouse, the princess felt her emptiness rob the life from her eyes.

She didn't even notice when she made the transition from the Astral Plane to the real world. She only noticed when thunder slapped her out of her doldrums; noticing that she was back on the plateau and was near the tree she had puked on. The Princess turned around, trying to find where the portal was, and caught a glimpse of a fading white light. Just as she felt something stuck the back of her head; sending her into darkness.

The dark-haired princess opened her eyes, gazing into the shadows above her with the understanding that this was the Void. What tipped her off was that she could feel the cold slab of stone that served as the welcome mat to most of her most nightmarish trips to this realm.

Emily slowly turned onto her side, unable to make a sound as she observed a staple horror that always got under her skin. On another slab on stone was a body, a corpse to be exact. Its rotting flesh was fully exposed and infested with maggots and flies; moths tearing at the grey hair of the feminine carcass. At first this sight alone was enough to terrify a young Emily. For the past three years, the fact that the body was growing like a living organism put anxiety in the Princess. For the corpse had grown its hair and the organs since its first debut. At this point, the body had formed a perfect, hazel coloured eye; before an insect had burrowed into it.

If her voice hadn't been robbed, she would probably be screaming as she hurried away from the rotting infestation. Silently, she exited the dark chambers and found herself on a stone road similar to the ones in the Astral Plane. This road, however, was fragmented and led into the mists of the Void; parts of it floating around other broken structures. This road could take Emily to many places. Either cryptic locations that were still shots of faceless people, or memories that played out in sound with the Princess as the star; reciting lines she knew all too well.

This time, however, the road skipped all of that. As the coated royal walked and jumped along the road, using her teleporting powers to cross massive gaps, she saw the place where all of her nightmares ended. The path stopped at the steps of a circular belvedere, a domed structure that is designed to provide cover from the elements whilst you gaze in all directions.

The Princess climbed the steps, knowing that if she didn't move the finish line would come to her. Her foot landed at the top, making an unexpected sound that reminded the royal of sticky toffee being trod on. When she looked down, she saw that the sticky substance was fresh blood. Blood that covered the floor of the belvedere; fresh life essence dripping from the roof like it was raining. Sickened beyond measure, the marked-lady was too appalled to notice that the blood had left a part of the floor untouched. The liquid free space caught her attention, especially its human sized shape, and her heart sank when she saw that a piece of paper was sitting in the middle.

Emily looked up at the ceiling, which continued to secrete blood, before she glanced back at the letter; the finish line of her nightmares. She knew that things would get worse, much worse, if she put off reading the letter. Her mind recalled the punishments for stalling and it motivated her to take her first step across the bloody floor.

Pain shot through her foot as if she had stood on hot coals. Her clothes were left unaffected, as if they were purely illusionary, but she could feel the burn marks form on her toes. By sheer force of will, she gritted her teeth and began to sprint across the boiling blood. No sound could leave her lips, but her face contorted in agony as it continued to burn; not just her feet but the drips that were falling from above.

She reached the untouched floor, her skin charred and flaming, and reached down to snap up the letter; praying that this would be the end of her suffering. But as she read the words she knew, a new addition caught her off guard. Along with the blood around her, as it suddenly leapt off the ground and flew through the air at the royal. The bloody fire storm clung to her, the pain blinding her if not for the repeating words that began to burn itself into her vision.

YOU CANNOT SAVE HER YOU CANNOT SAVE HER YOU CANNOT SAVE HER YOU CANNOT SAVE HER YOU CANNOT SAVE HER YOU CANNOT SAVE HER YOU CANNOT SAVE HER YOU CANNOT SAVE HER

YOU CANNOT SAVE HIM

Eyes snapping awake, Emily pulled herself from her nightmare into the waking world; escaping the same words that had haunted her shapeless visions for what felt like forever. Though she knew that the air she breathed was real, it didn't sooth her nerves enough to stop her from gasping it in like a straw with a hole slashed in it. The princess was so stricken that her senses could not pick up on her surroundings; sights and smells rendered blind and tasteless to a person who had emerged from a sea of confusion.

The days of when a friendly face would appear to comfort her and dispel her worries were ended. Instead the rough grip of a coarse-skinned hand appeared on her shoulder; shaking the princess violently. Scared, Emily tried to squirm away but was rewarded with another hand grabbing her.

As if the fingers clutching her armour served as the anchor that brought reality upon her, the dark-haired princess' eyes finally came into focus. What she saw didn't please her in the slightest, for she had jumped from her tormented imagination straight into the fires of reality. The reality being that the dark-haired princess' wrists were bound together and that the person who was shaking her was clearly on the side of Hoshido; the country that Hans had provoked into a violent skirmish.

In fact, her captor was—ironically enough—the female Flame Tribe member, Rinkah; one of the two officers she had spared. Still shaking Emily, the tribal-woman gave heated words, saying; "Stop moving! You're going to knock over my stew pot, you idiot."

Emily did stop flailing, especially when her senses picked up the heat that was coming from the fire that was in such close proximity that it was just asking for a clumsy elbow-bump to spill over the hanging black pot. She shifted herself as far away from the flames as Rinkah's hands would let her. "Where am I?" Asked the princess, hurriedly.

"This is a Flame Tribe village within Hoshido's territory," spoke the tanned-fighter in a slow, mild mannered tone. "I'm going to hand you over to the Hoshidan authorities."

With the pieces of information received, it revived the princess' clarity of the events that just passed. Of Han's betrayal, of Ganglari pulling her into the canyon, Lilith's rescue and reveal and Gunter's…

Her stomach churned as the sound of broken boards and her guard captain's screams played mercilessly in her mind. It took much strength to block that fresh memory, for she needed to focus on what was important. "Listen," she began in a serious tone. "That skirmish at the Canyon was not meant to happen. I was told that—"

"Spare me your lies. Nohr's motives do not need to be spun into pretty sounding words, for they are clear as crystal." Her tattooed face did not bother to hide the personal discontent she had for the royal. "You broke the border treaty and attacked our men; no doubt you were planning to spin it into a sob story to—"

"No!" Interrupted Emily in plain anger. "That is not what happened! We were given false information; we were told that the fort was empty. And before we realized that wasn't the case, an officer—"

"Do you mean the officer that you killed?! The old man that you knocked into the Canyon!?"

"What!?"

"I saw what you did, what you tried to do to the other solider before you fell into the Canyon! I saw you throw away the sword you used to kill one of your own men, you lying coward!" Rinkah grabbed the rope the bound Emily's hands and used it to drag the princess to her feet. "If Queen Mikoto didn't want you alive, I would have thrown you straight into the Canyon; you piece of Nohrian c—"

The tanned woman's lips were silenced by the sheer force of Emily's head-butt, which knocked her backwards into her stew pot. As the fiery liquid spread across the opposite side of the room, the princess raised her bound hands and called upon her mark to slow the passage of time. However, before the mark began to glow, the sensation of cold air stuck her body so hard that even her soul felt like it had frozen. Shivering slightly, the dark-haired combatant was quick to realize that whatever caused this chill was stopping her from using her magic. Turning around, she spotted a young lady dressed in holy robes of red and white. She was armed with a magical staff of some kind, most likely the kind that prevents magic.

Without even thinking, the Nohrian tried to charge at the priestess. But Rinkah, roaring like a scolded lioness, brought down a brass-handled club upon Emily's left thigh. The blow earned a scream of pain and the drop of the knees, but that only raised her temper past the breaking point. Ignoring the pain, she rose up on one foot and drove her knee into Rinkah's gut. But her fury was equal to the princess, as well as her own head-butt which sent Emily reeling backwards.

But before anymore blows were exchanged, the door slammed open and a shadow darted across the room. In one smooth motion, he grabbed the tanned woman's weapon wielding arm and set up a barrier between the two enraged fighters. "Rinkah," shouted the man in a calm and orderly fashion. "Remember our orders! Princess Emily is to—"

"Fuck our orders!" Roared the Flame Tribe Princess; trying to push the green-haired man out of her way. "This rat tried to kill us, Kaze! And she backstabbed that old man who fought for her, her ally, like any other Nohrian garbage!"

"How dare you!" Screamed the dark-haired lady, as she tried to rush past the ninja with no success; forgetting about the priestess that was blocking her magic. "I did not kill Gunter! I have not lied about anything! And if I hadn't sparred your life, you won't be here, you stupid skank!"

"You didn't spare us," snarled the tattooed warrior. "You failed to kill us with your poultry magic because you didn't have the guts to finish your enemies face to face!"

"If that were true, why didn't the guards pilfer your bodies when they carried you away? I see you still have your necklace, Rinkah. Strange that they didn't just tear it off your corpse along with your equipment? But wait, they didn't even touch that, did they?"

The Flame Tribe princess was taken off guard by that point. "How…?"

"And one other thing," continued the Nohrian in a temper that had simmer to righteous fury. "Do you remember the lake that sits at the bottom of Windmire's cenote? And the bridges which you cross to travel up and down said cenote?"

"What's your point," spat the fighter who was still trying to wrestle past Kaze.

"My point is that, in normal circumstances, dead prisoners are usually tied up and taken to one of the highest bridges that is directly over the lake. They are then dropped into the water from that height to make sure that the prisoners are indeed dead. If one of them happens to be alive at that point, they either die upon hitting the water or drown to death as they try to escape their bonds. I think it's safe to say that your disposal was nothing like I described."

Kaze nodded. "We were put into wagons and were carried out of the city. I presume Prince Leo was the one who organized our escape." Emily's eyes widened in surprise. The ninja smiled, softly, and explained. "He was the one who overserved the men who dealt with our corpses. He had to be in on it, for if he wasn't we would be dead by now. My only question is this: why did you spare us? Because I do not believe it was out of cowardice, as my companion Rinkah believes."

Said companion had stopped struggling with the ninja at this point, though she still glared with silent reproach at the princess.

The Nohrian took a deep breath before replying, her anger back under the boiling point, and tried to remember all the advice Xander had given to her over the years. Those lessons ranged from poise to projection, but the most important of them all was to speak with your mind rather than your heart. Unfortunately, that was a lesson she always struggled with. But right now, for the sake of peace, she needed to ignore all the pain and anger that rested inside of her.

After a long exhale, Emily began her explanation in an even tone. "The reason why I spared you was simple: I saw no point in taking your lives. You were already our prisoners and I only fought you to satisfy my father's… questionable needs. I refuse to kill pointlessly, even if my father commands me to do it."

"So you'd rather aid our escape, soldiers who fight against your country, than kills us?" Queried the ninja; who for some ungodly reason had signs of… disappointment on his face?

"Just because our countries fight against each other doesn't give us the right to abandon our morals. If given the choice, you would still be our prisoners and be treated with basic dignity. But my father wanted me to break my morals and I refuse to do that, even for him."

The Flame Tribe princess laughed at these words. "What do you Nohrians know of honor? You're King is a vile monster, who—"

"Yes, King Garon is cruel man. I know that, but I also know that he wasn't always like this. Before he went mad, he raised my brother, Prince Xander. And if you knew my brother, you would know that he is the most honorable and just man in all the world. He is why we, the citizens of the dark lands, are proud to be Nohrian while our King turned cruel. And that honor was taught to him by his father, the King. So please, don't speak to me about honor when you…" she glared Rinkah, "…write me off as a liar and a murder of kin by virtue of my heritage alone."

The tattooed lady still had a flame in her eye, but her tension lessened in the rest of her body. She exchanged a look with the ninja, one that seemed to be a mix of disbelief and mirth. Having lowered her club a while ago, she placed it down on the ground before taking a few steps forward. Now level with Kaze, without scuffling him, she looked at the dark-haired princess in the same mild-manner she had before losing her temper. "So, Princess of Nohr. What do you claim happened at the Canyon? Speak the truth. Swear on the honor that you claim to have."

"I swear on my honor, as a Princess of Nohr, that I was sent on a mission by my father, the King. I wasn't aware that the fort was occupied, because Garon told me that it was abandoned."

"Why would he do such a thing," asked the Oni Savage in a reasonable tone, rather than anger.

Emily felt her heart sink as she uttered the unpleasant truth. "As I said, he has gone mad. The thing he wanted was not raised tension between our lands, or just that anyway. He…my father was clearly trying to kill me…"

There was a silence after those words, as the two Hoshidans resumed communicating by face alone. Emily, on the other hand, began to walk to a blank part of the house. She didn't care what the wall was made from. She didn't really care about anything at the moment. She put her face in her bound hands; managing to get both palms sides enough space without hurting her wrists too much. Though that pain was nothing to the emptiness that was filling up inside of her.

The ninja was the first to speak again, asking her about how she was sure and if it had anything to do with their escape. The Princess answered with the passion of a child five minutes after its parents had died. "No, he gave me the sword before I was tasked to fight you. He must have already planned on sending me there."

Of course, they asked how the sword proved that. She didn't know or care which one said it, because words at this moment meant very little to her right now. "Because the sword tried to pull me into the Canyon with… Gunter…"

Tears were starting to dribble down the space between her palms and her cheeks, as that concept had finally sunk deep enough into her heart that she couldn't deny it anymore. Gunter…was dead. Him, the old solider who had watched over her for so many years. The one who was always there, being grumpy yet loving, and now he was just…gone.

As grief continued to take hold, Rinkah come over with fire in her voice again; something about another officer. "Hans," muttered the distraught Princess. Anger should be what comes when she hears that name, but she has spent her anger already; in defense of a man who threw her away like she was an unused toy that got brought out only to be discarded like rubbish.

"Hans? Is that the name of the solider you attacked?"

"Yes…He killed…Gunter…"

And that was the last thing she remembered saying.


	7. Chapter 6: Prisoner of Hoshido (Act 1)

**I own nothing. Fire Emblem is owned by Nintendo and Dishonoured is owned by Bethesda.**

The Empress of Gristol (Act 1)

Chapter 6: Prisoner of Hoshido

It was another sunny day in Hoshido, the land of grass. Another sunny day that Emily hated. This wasn't because she disliked the very sight of the sun, like a blind fool who regretted that dare he did as a child, and it had very little to do with the fact that the coat she wore over her armour wasn't made for this weather. She had again been placed inside a caravan near a barrel of water that leaked ever so slightly…ah, there is the problem. The caravan. Or rather the memoires of a certain caravan ride she just had about…huh. How long ago was that journey? It was hard to pinpoint memories when you lose track of time. But maybe that was a blessing to the princess, if she knew what type of blessing she wanted.

Sighing, the dark-haired lady didn't bother to check if anyone was watching her as she pressed her bound hands against the leaky container. She waited for the water to dribble into the crevices before she began to press her palms against her sweaty face. It wasn't much, but the fantasy of being able to drain all the fresh water away to the point where her captors began to die of dehydration was really appealing to her at that moment. I mean, they did go through a desert. Or was it a mountain? Or maybe just more grass? Who knows, or cared. Certainly not Emily.

Well, not about the landscape at any rate. The fact that she was captured was what she was caring about, to the point where she had tried to think of ways to escape. But thanks to the time lost due to her episode with…well, after that spell of lost time ended she was on the road in this caravan. At first she hoped she had awakened with Lilith, blushing or apologising for something silly she did to her mistress when she awoke. But the person staring down at her wasn't a dragon thing, so—

"Argh!"

The sound of her slap seemed to have been heard, for a blotch of jungle green hair appeared at the entrance of the caravan. "Is everything alright, Princess Emily?"

"Yes," she grunted back; her right cheek throbbing in pain. "Everything is fine and dandy."

The ninja smiled whilst he moved inside the caravan. "That is good to hear. We were worried that the death of your comrade had robbed you of all your wits…" He paused, noticing the dark cloud that hung over the princess. "…I'm sorry, that was tactless of me."

"I-Its…Its fine. I've...accepted it." She shook her head, wondering deep down if that would ever truly be the case. "Look, what do you want? If its food, just leave it in the same place."

He shook his head. "I was coming to inform you that we have reached Castle Shirasagi, the capital of Hoshido. We are in the boundaries of the town surrounding the castle and will be stopping soon." Kaze pulled out one of his ninja knives. "I've also come to free your hands."

"Why? I know I won't be able to escape, so why pretend I'm nothing more than a prisoner?"

"You'd be surprised," replied the ninja; a smile still present on his face. "Besides, if you can't escape with or without your hands tied than we might as well allow you to be comfortable."

Emily considered those words before she raised her tied hands. The ninja's knife sliced through the rope instantly and the princess could finally stretch her arms. Whatever marks the ropes had left were hidden by the armour and gloves she still wore, but her muscles were still sore in those areas. Kaze extend out his hand to the princess, which she took without much hesitation.

When they exited the caravan together, the dark-haired royal was hit by the full force of the sun and it dazzled her greatly. In fact, she raised her hood as fast as she could, yelling, "Great Dragons!" She heard many people that she did not see laugh, causing her skin to flush faster in this heat.

"What's wrong, Honourable Princess?" Jeered Rinkah from a place out of Emily's view. "Can't stand a simple midday sunshine?" She laughed again, the sound coming from the hooded royal's right. "Come now, you will have to get used to it sooner or later. And I wager you will find it more pleasant than the dreary weather of Nohr."

"Very debatable," replied Emily in a jaded tone. "The sun should only shine to keep the crops alive. Other than that, it should stay behind the clouds where it belongs rather than provide this excess." She straightened up, but did not lower her hood. "Besides, I will probably never see it again once I am imprisoned. Unless there is some form of torture I am not aware of that involves this hellish heat."

"Not to my knowledge," replied the Oni Savage. "But I doubt that will ever happen to you."

"Come," spoke Kaze as he made his way forward. "High Prince Ryoma is waiting to see you. Let us not keep the man waiting."

With that, the two Hoshidan officers escorted the Nohrian into the castle; accompanied by shrine maidens with silencing staffs to prevent Emily from using her magic. Said royal didn't bother to take in her surroundings, for she was trying to sort out her emotions. All the events that had led to this moment—her father's attempt on her life, Gunter's death—and the events that could come to pass where racing in her head. Peppered with thoughts for her siblings, which pained her the most for she could not help but entertain the idea that she may never see them again.

It was not until she sensed that her escort had halted did she start to take in the sights around her. The first thing she noticed was more of that damn light that was coming from a window built in the celling, its rays casting down upon the Hoshidan throne. And what a throne it was. It was a giant construction that could be separated into three parts. The first was the white steps and atop them was the second part; a large black and gold stand that supported the throne itself. The seat itself had a rainbow pattern at its base, topped with more black, gold and red which lined the arms of the royal seat. It's back was as long and tall as the room itself, embroiled with a wavy design that shone like the rising sun. Though quite a spectacle, the first word that came to Emily's mind, to describe the marvel, was garish.

This frivolous thought was soon discarded when her eyes settled on the man that was at the bottom of the throne's steps, who was no doubt the High Prince Ryoma. He had russet coloured hair that was long and spikey, though a few strands did limp over the pointy face guard. This red and gold piece of armour also covered his chin, so you couldn't tell if it was naturally pointy or if it was just the armour. This could be said about his bulkiness, in particularly his large red and gold shoulder pads. The overall image of spikey red, including the white coat that balanced out the colour scheme, reminded the dark-haired princess of a lobster.

As she cracked a smile that was obscured by her hood, Ryoma addressed the two Hoshidans that was kneeling before him. "Welcome back, Kaze, Rinkah. Good work." He spoke in a naturally rough tone; the kind you'd find in a warrior—or samurai in this case. He then looked at Emily and folded his arms; the expression on his face unreadable. His hazel eyes had a light in them and his mouth was frozen in a contorted fashion. It was quite uncomfortable for the princess, so she averted her vision downwards at the floor. Seeing this, the russet-haired prince lowered his arms and began to smile, warmly. "Come now, Emily, there is no need to be shy. Please, lower you hood."

"Shyness is the last thing I'm feeling at the moment," replied the princess in a measured tone. She raised her gloved hands and lowered her hood; freeing her mid-long dark hair and sky blue eyes from the shadows. She looked at the High Prince straight in the eyes and curtseyed, as she continued to speak. "Lord Ryoma, on behalf of Nohr, I apologise for what happened at Bottomless Canyon. If you'd permit me, I would like to explain what happened with my own words. I can wait till trial if needs be, but if you intend to extract punishment now I implore you to reconsider. This attack…"

She soon realised that he wasn't really listening. In fact, he had turned his head to look at something that was approaching Emily on her left. Slightly annoyed, the princess followed suit out of curiosity. The person that was approaching her was a woman the same height as Emily. She also had the same coloured hair as Emily, only it was long to the point it was tied up with a very decorative, circular hair pin. She wore a ceremonial dress that was white and blue that was adorn with white lilies. On her arm was a shield that bore the Hoshidan symbol, the kind of shield that skilled archers sometimes wore. She wore a golden crown and had hazel eyes, eyes that were glistening with tears.

"I cannot believe it is really you…"

"…Um, have we met?"

"Oh, I've missed you so much! Come here, Emily, my sweet child!"

"…Your what?!"

Before she could stop her, the stranger had her arms around the princess; tears gushing freely as she hugged the confused Nohrian. As the stranger sobbed, Emily was trying very hard to process what had just been said; along with the urge to push this crazed woman away. She looked around at the watching Hoshidans, most of them smiling happily; though the shrine maiden was just weeping into her sleeve, having been moved by the awkward hug.

The princess did manage to find an answer, just as the stranger released her grip, and it was a strange one. "Are you…" she began, tentatively. "…I mean…gods, this is awkward. A-are you my father's concubine?"

The look of shock on the stranger's face was tinted with repulsion. "What?! No, I'm not! Not that there's anything wrong with being a, err, concubine…I mean, I was more of a mistress before I married your father—"

"Wait—Hold on! Is this why there's a war?! I mean, if your Garon's wife and you are here in Hoshido—"

The repulsion rose to the level that the stranger looked like she was about to throw up. "I'm not Garon's wife! I would never pledge my life to that scum, even if to save my own life." She stepped back, her puffy eyes now filled with more sorrow. "Do you truly not remember me?"

Emily shook her head. "Sorry, lady. I've never seen you before in my life."

Ryoma quickly came to the side of the stranger, patting her gently on the shoulder as she continued to weep. "There, there, mother." He then gazed at the princess with a mournful look. "I was afraid this might happen. Please, dry you tears, mother, so we can explain the truth to our long-lost family member."

The Queen did as suggested; calming herself and wiping the dribbles from under her eyelids. She focused on the face of the bewildered Nohrian(?) and begun to speak in a solemn tone. "Oh, my poor Emily. It's a sad story. When you were very young, you were abducted by forces from Nohr. I am your mother, Mikoto." She smiled weakly, the tears threatening to gush once more. "All this time, I didn't know if I'd ever see you again!"

Emily looked at the woman calming to be her mother; the sincerity in her eyes were swaying the princess' thoughts out of focus. She did share the same hair and if this was true it would explain why Garon had tried to kill her…but words drifted into her mind and voices echoed in her ears:

 _Nooo!_

 _Get away from her!_

 _Mommy!_

"No!" Emily shook her head as she stepped away from the Hoshidan royals. "No, that's not possible. You can't be my mother!"

"It must be quite a shock, but I assure you that she speaks the truth." Said Ryoma in a calm tone, trying to calm down the panicking princess. "I am your older brother, Ryoma—"

"Bullshit!" She spat in an irregular, gasping breath. "I don't…I mean…" She grasped her head, as images began to flash before her eyes like speeding riders; almost impossible to decipher until they returned to Nohr. "…No, Xander is my older brother! Leo, Elise and Camila are my siblings!"

"Are those the Nohrian royals?" Asked the High Prince in a clearly bitter tone. "They're not your real family." Before Emily could flare at him, he raised her hand as his face began to tighten like stone. The princess recognised this appeal, for her real brother did the same, so she allowed him to continue speaking. "I still remember the day you were taken…" The bitterness began to grow into anger as he spoke each word. "…In those days, there was tension between Hoshido and Nohr, but not full blown war. Not until King Garon lured King Sumeragi—our father—to Cheve under false pretences. He said it was for a peace conference. Ha!" That laugh was the eruption of his frustration and anger, which was followed by him spitting at the Nohrian King's name. "His real plan was to murder our father in cold blood! And to make matters worse…he kidnapped you." His fury seemed to dissipate in the end, replaced by regret and pain.

The princess digested the story slowly. She could not deny that her father could have killed the Hoshidan King in such a treacherous way, and it did explain why she had been locked up and sent on a mission to kill her…but why didn't he do so outright? Why kidnap her and keep her alive if he was just going to kill her anyway? And besides, no matter how hard she tried to recall such events, she could not remember anything about Hoshido. In fact, the crypt images she saw in her mind or her dreams had nothing in relation with these lands or its people.

Slightly shaken, the dark-haired royal looked back at Ryoma. "Listen, Lord Lobster…" The High Prince cracked a natural smile at these words, which Emily ignored. "…If I am truly a Princess of Hoshido, why do I bear a Nohrian name that you and the Queen here still insist on using?"

"You do have a Hoshidan name," replied the prince. "You see, Queen Mikoto met my father while he was still married to Queen Ikona. At the time, the former queen had taken ill and it seemed like she was dying."

"While I was nursing her," continued Mikoto, calmly, "She discovered that I was quite smitten with Sumeragi…and that he was smitten with me." She sighed as if pained by the memory. "She didn't believe she would make it, so she gave me the title of Queen and asked me to support Sumeragi in her place. We…prematurely shared our love with one another in a moment of weakness. Despite that and the blessing, I only worked harder to make sure she would survive and I succeeded. She carried on being Queen and gave birth to two more children. But during the birth of the last child, she died…" She trailed off as shame took hold.

"You did the best you could, mother." Assured Ryoma. The Queen nodded, though not with much conviction. The High Prince continued the story in her stead, saying, "Queen Ikona was always frail. It was a miracle that she managed to live for so long after the complications she had with her second born." His tone was clam and measured, but you could tell that there was still some sorrow present as he spoke about his biological mother. "When she died, you were already three years old and named Emily. Our Father officially legitimised you when he remarried, naming you Jun to mark your official acceptance as royalty. But even he never bothered to use that name, for Hinoka and I always called you Emily and we always will."

The dark-haired princess looked at both their faces, pondering this explanation carefully. "Well, that certainly sounded convincing…"

"You are still not convinced?" Quired Ryoma in a disappointed tone. "Do you truly remember nothing about us?"

The act of shaking her head was starting to way heavy on her heart, in light of how honest these two seemed to be. But… "Honestly, I haven't a single shred of memory that confirms your words. It may be flaky, my recollection of my early days, but unless the name Corvo means anything to you, I can't bring myself to believe your story."

The High Prince shook his head. "No, that name means nothing to me. And I'm sorry about all of this. I know this is a lot to take in."

Suddenly, the sound of hurried footsteps began to echo in the room as a Hoshidan samurai darted into the throne room. He reached the royals and knelt down, shouting all the while; "Lord Ryoma! I have an urgent message! We are under attack from the north!"

The High Prince's eyes gleamed in horror. "No! Hinoka and Sakura are in that area right now!" The Queen gasped in worry at these words; clueing Emily in on the identity of the two females.

"Yes, milord. I've been told that they're working to help evacuate the villagers."

"Very well. We'll need to provide support. I'll leave immediately." He turned to the dark-haired princess. "Emily, will you come with me?"

The unmistakable worry that was in his words imminently won over the princess. Coupled with the prospect of action that would take her mind off this crazy business, she nodded as fast as lightening. "Of course! Let's go help them!" She turned to the exit and began running.

As she passed Kaze and Rinkah, who had kept silent until now, the tanned woman barked at her, "Oi, Princess! Don't rush into battle unarmed!"

"I am armed," she replied without hesitation.

"No you're not, you twit!" Roared the Oni Savage. "You threw one of your swords into the canyon, remember?"

"And I found that contraption you were hiding in your coat," added Kaze as he reached into his pouch. However, he was surprised to find that the retractable sword was not there. As he looked up, he saw that it was back into its master's hand. The two officers blinked and in that moment, Ryoma dashed past them in purist of his supposed sibling. They exchanged a look before they pursued, Rinkah yelling:

"You're still going the wrong way!"

Despite the cold winds, Emily still found it warm as they approached the snowy mountains of the north. Not the burning heat she had experienced in the capital, but it was hotter than a cold night in Nohr. And this was the first time the princess felt distain to the frozen winter rain, as the sun light gleamed off the snow at just the right angle to pierce her eyes.

She retreated back into the caravan after another attempt to survey the land, rubbing her eyes in frustration. While Kaze and Rinkah kept silent, weapons at the ready, Ryoma was sat crossed legged in the middle of the caravan and was quick to ask the princess; "Any sign of Hinoka and Sakura?"

"No redheads in sight," replied Emily. "If the last villagers are correct, they should be assisting the hamlet at the base of these mountains. And I would be able to see that by now if it weren't for this bloody weather!"

"Is the sun truly such a frightening enemy to Nohrians?" Asked Rinkah in a mocking tone.

"To be fair, Princess Rinkah," chimed in the driver of the caravan—the shrine maiden who had been monitoring Emily. "The snow is quite blinding at this time of day. Fortunately, an over cast is forming and it should improve our visibility."

"Great! Thanks, lady," heartily said the princess; giving the shrine maiden a pat on the back.

The ninja, who was examining his knives and shuriken, chimed in with a question. "Princess Emily, do you have any magic that could assist us?"

Ryoma's eyes snapped to his sibling. "What is he referring to? I see no scroll or tome on your person."

She heisted, wondering if she should tell him about her mark. "Well…I've learnt a couple of spells that don't need a tome to be on hand to use them. It's kind of like the Ice Tribe magic, except its more versatile."

"Really? I was under the impression that a tome was always needed, barring tribes. But Nohr is a country that breaths magic in all its forms, advances are only to be excepted, it seems." He scrutinised his sister for a moment more, his face plagued with an annoyance, before he mirrored the ninja's request. "Well, do you have any useful spells?"

"I've got one in mind." She turned to face the driver's end of the caravan. She raised her hand out of the view of her brother, casting the spell that allowed her to see past inanimate objects. "Okay, I can see that there are still people in the hamlet. They don't seem to be panicking…and I think the watchman on duty is drunk."

"How can you see that much from this distance," inquired Rinkah.

"Besides the obvious magic involved, I can see yellow outline of people and objects of interest from a certain distance."

"Objects of interest?"

"Weapons, keys and stuff like that. Especially bottles for some reason." She focused her view onto the mountains themselves. "Add dragon veins to that list, because there are lots of them out there."

The High Prince closed his eyes for a few moments, clasping his hands together like he was praying. "Indeed, I can sense them. Hinoka must have sensed them too. That's why she is drawing the Faceless to the hills."

Not breaking from her inspection, Emily still raised an eye brow. "I wouldn't call these hills, Ryoma. There too big to be those."

The Prince roared with laughter. "Please, sister, Hoshidan mountains touch the heavens themselves. The measly mounds around here don't even come close to that."

"If you say so…" Emily stopped talking abruptly, as new images began to grace her vison. Atop the closest mountain, or whatever the rock mound could be called, was a faint yellowish glow of life. Despite how weak the colour was, it was still of incredulous size and its shape was unrecognisable to the princess. Disabling the spell, she turned to her brother urgently. "I've picked up a weird life form. It's atop the hill nearest the hamlet."

Without another word, the High Prince rose from his siting position and leapt out the back of the still moving caravan. The two officers were stunned at the prince's hasty move until the dark-haired princess followed suit. By the time the two had warned the driver and exited out onto the snow, the royals were a head by a considerable margin.

As the clouds began to obstruct the sun, Emily began to see better. In fact, as they came close to the gates of the hamlet, she could spy the creature she had seen before properly. It was large, hulking creature that had swamp green skin. It was covered in bounds of leather and chains were dangling from its muscly arms. It bore a spotted mask on its face, but even then you couldn't see its true face. If it had a face.

Ryoma, spotting it, cried out. "There! I can see the Faceless! I'll deal with it! Go and warn the hamlet!" With that, he reached down and placed his hand on the white handle of his katana. When he drew his blade from its sheath, it shone and crackled with a blue light. Emily could feel the power that was emanating from the weapon, reminding her of her brother's Siegfried. An apt comparison, for when the russet-haired prince held his blade in both hands the blue light became lightning. Said dancing energy sprung from the blade and flew for the Faceless.

The princess did not stay to watch the display of power. She reached the gate of the hamlet and started banging on the wood, aiming her voice at the drunk guard in the lookout. "Oi! You, up there! Wake up!" He responded with a loud snore. "Oi! Wake up, you drunk bastard! There's Faceless on the loose! Go and mobilize the other guards, now!"

The drunk guard suddenly jolted forwards, hanging his head over the wooden battlements in a stupor. "That's dastard, madam!"

"What?"

"Dastard!" He hiccupped back. "It's not proper to use swears *hic*."

"I could give a flying fuck if its proper or not, your community is in danger, solider! You need to—"

"Flying Pegasus, madam," he interjected, rudely. "You're *hic* mother must be proud to have such a foul-mouthed daughter. Such honour you must bring her by insulting an old *hic* man."

Before she could fully use her foul mouth, another voiced chimed in from behind the wooden wall. "Thank you for the warning, traveller. Don't mind the old man. We'll shove his face into the snow to sober him up. Will you need shelter?"

"No," she replied. "My group and I are actually here to defeat these creatures." As she said this, she heard the sound of a body crashing into rocks. "We can handle it," she finished; overserving the lifeless corpse of the Faceless from where she stood.

Before she left, the drunk threw something down at her. It wasn't his bottle, but a small sculpture of some kind. "Maybe that *hic* Goddess Icon will inspire you to speak as a woman should. Though *hic* you're probably a godless heaven. Every youngster seems to be these days." Taking the high ground, the princess pocketed the gift and made her way back to the High Prince; resisting the urge to flip the drunk the bird.

Ryoma was waiting for her with Kaze and Rinkah, his sword still drawn and glowing with power. "Sister, can you scout the area with your magic? Any information will be useful, but our priority is to find Hinoka and Sakura. Hinoka will be on a Pegasus, find that at the very least."

She nodded and did as asked. Her enhanced vision revealed to her the surrounding landscape. She saw several dragon veins on the outskirts of the forests that filled the spaces between the hills and plateaus; their branches lifeless thanks to the snow. Emily's scanning of the four or five rock formations revealed traces of more Faceless. She noticed that some of them where convening to a valley that lay between one of the hills and a genuine mountain, and when she focused on it…

"Found them!" She proclaimed. "They're in a valley over in that direction." She pointed to a place that was north west of her position. "Hinoka seems to be at its entrance on her Pegasus."

"And Sakura?"

"She seems to be injured; a sprained ankle from the looks of it. But she has a healing stave—"

"You mean staff, right?"

"Stave, staff, what's the difference?" Replied the princess testily.

"One's Nohrian, thus wrong, and the other is Hoshidan. And unfortunately, shrine maiden staffs can't heal self-injuries."

"Nor can staves," added the dark-haired lady. "Butler and Maids can learn to siphon off the magic when their healing others, but they can't use it directly on themselves. Why does magic have to be so contrived?"

"I do not pretend to understand the vast complexities of magic. Maybe it has its own unexplained desire to impart hubris upon us, a desire that defies our own understanding…Also, you said stave again."

"What's wrong with me saying stave?"

"Besides being a Nohrian word, it unexplainably makes me angry every time I hear it. So please, stop using it."

Emily did not try to push her luck or buttons of the High Prince, for not only was he still a stranger in her eyes she had spotted a frightening development. "Ryoma! The Faceless have discovered the valley! And…shit! It's a dead end! They're trapped!"

Armed with that knowledge, Ryoma began running to his sister's aid. He ignored the cries of his dark-haired sibling as he approached the dragon vein that was quite near the hamlet. Without missing a step, he strode across the green sparks and harnessed its ball of fire. The prince didn't let it escape his fingertips. Instead, he threw the ball right at the hill in front of him. From the ground up, the stone melted into flat snow; the sound of the cascade being almost deafening.

The three warriors observed the death of hill, stuck silent in awe of such an incredible sight. Rinkah was the one stunned the most by the impressive feat, her mouth hung open as if she had been struck dumb. "To harness the ancient dragon powers…" commented Kaze, sheepishly. "…Is truly a magnificent gift." He closed his eyes in thought, as a question came to him. "Yet I wonder if even the royals who wield that power can fully control it…"

He looked at Emily, who was gritting her teeth and scowling at the High Prince's back. "Bloody idiot! What was he thinking? He could have damaged the hamlet and hurt his own people!"

"He usually isn't this reckless," explained the ninja, calmly. "But his sisters are in danger and, from what I have heard, he is not the kind of man to let anything slow him down when it comes to his family."

"Well, he's charging into a concentrated horde of Faceless…" This complaint died in her throat, as with her enhanced vision she saw the Prince take down a Faceless in a single swing of his blade. It was when he vanquished the second monster without it even touching him did she feel that the High Prince did not need help.

Emily turned her attention to the left side of the terrain, scanning the land for the best possible path. The princess, once she released her vision, readied for battle by raising her bandana and lowering her hood. "Okay, here's the plan. Out of the ten faceless that are still alive, there are four of them that are approaching the Princesses from the south. We need to intercept them, kill them and rendezvous with Ryoma. Once the Princesses are safe, we will deal with the rest of the Faceless."

She then pulled out her retractable sword and pointed it at the hill that was to their left. "First, we'll cut through that hill. There's a Faceless at the top, so hopefully it'll die when I blast it with the dragon vein. Rinkah, you take point with me. Kaze, I want you covering our approach with shuriken."

"Very well," replied the ninja. "I have also brought some Vulnerary. Healing potions." He explained, seeing the confusion in his commander's eyes. "In the unfortunate case of an injury, one of these will be enough to get you back on your feet."

"That's great, thanks Kaze." The princess then turned to the tanned woman, who hadn't responded to the commands that have been given. Keeping in mind their turbulent meetings, especially the one where Emily had called Rinkah a skank, it was hard for the princess to think of what to say; how should could ask the Oni Savage if she would/wanted to follow her orders.

"…"

"…"

"…What are we waiting for, Princess?! Are we in a hurry or not!?"

It was a good thing that her battle apparel covered her face, for the embarrassment the Nohrian(?) was feeling was more uncomfortable in the presence of strangers. She cleared her throat, signalled the direction they were heading in and started running. Rinkah, club at the ready, followed suit while the ninja trailed behind them; past enemies now present allies.

The point where the battle truly began, where the race to the royal sisters took off, was when Emily mirrored Ryoma's reckless action and stuck down the hill with a dragon vein. There was no danger to innocent life, or even plant life as the forest adjacent to the mountain was left untouched. This could not be said for the Faceless that had been climbing said hill; for by the time the trio had ran past the creature it was a crumpled heap with a half-squished head.

The short cut through the hill took them to a giant forest clearing of snow, which two of the monsters were stomping across as they headed north. Emily, knowing that time was of the essence, gave orders to her allies to attack the Faceless closet to them. The idea was to kill it before it's fellow complain noticed, so they could focus their efforts individually and distract the hunters from the corned royals they were chasing.

Emily and Rinkah managed to catch their target with its back turned. Their assault was syncopated, as the princesses took a turn each to slice and bash at the Faceless' legs. The dumb beast was brought to its knees, just as a shuriken cut through the cold air to land into its back, but it was far from tamed. It swung its arms blindly, and the chain from its broken shackles managed to clip the Princess' own leg. The shock of the sudden impact is sometimes all you need to knock someone to the floor. Emily was evidence to this fact, for she was now on her back in the snow.

The Oni Savage, seeing that her comrade was down, charged the damaged foe that was trying to reach out and grab the fallen commander's leg. That hand was squashed by wood and fire, followed swiftly by the monster's mask as she brought the force of a maelstrom down upon the monster. However, in the act of saviour, she did not survey the fact that the second monster had noticed them; not until she saw it bound towards her with a raised fist.

Kaze, in a flash, closed the distance and leaped in front of his tribal ally. He managed to take the blow from the monster well, thanks to his wrist-blades that punctured the creature's fingers, but he still moved back to escape the second swing of its fist that was bound to come. However, a sudden, familiar noise rang through the clearing that took the Hoshidan officers by surprise. They both looked to the side, seeing that the princess had an armed raised that had water and oil coiling around it. Even the Faceless turned to the source of the noise and was rewarded by hardened, oily tendrils; that darted trough the holes of its mask to skewer its head.

Both monsters were now laying in the snow, blood spewing from the holes in their masks. The Princess managed to avoid the bath puddle by rolling to the side, for her leg had moved from shock to pain. Though she needn't have done that, for after a few seconds the Faceless started to dissolve into dust along with the blood they gushed.

The ninja rushed to her aid, pulling one of his Vulnerary potions from his belt and gave it to the Nohrian(?). There was no taste, but the effects quickly occurred as Emily could feel the pain from her legs vanish; though she still felt drained from using such a powerful spell. Rinkah was the who helped pull the princess up from the snow, though her next comment was not about the same spell that had been used on her—though that was still in the back of her mind.

"Okay, that's three out of four," she remarked, proudly. "Where's the last one, Princess?"

Knowing that she was out of manna, Emily used her normal vision to examine the place she had seen it last. Looking up and the hill that lay north, she saw the back of the Faceless as it crossed the peak and began to journey downwards. "There!" She yelled and pointed, while starting to move forward urgently. "It's up there! If we get to a dragon vein, we can knock it down and kill it like the first one!"

The three of them rushed across the snowy field to the edge of the forest that lined the northern hill. But despite how quick they were, by the time the fireball descended onto the hill the Faceless had reached the bottom. Rinkah, seeing the open plain now before them, began to ran towards the monster. She stopped when she noticed that her commander hadn't moved from her spot.

"What are you doing? It's getting away!"

"I know! Just give me a minute!" Shouted the princess, as she lowered herself to ground so she could drain the mana from the dragon vein. Luckily the process was quick enough to allow Emily to start sprinting before Rinkah could make any comment. Kaze also didn't question the strange behaviour and just silently followed his female allies as they charged after the monster.

Those seconds wasted seemed to be enough time for the monster to dart into the clump of trees that surrounded the base of the final hill; the final hurdle before it could reach the injured princess that was trapped at the end of the valley. The trio went as fast as they could, sprinting past the chilled trees and the roots that were hidden underneath the snow. But alas, by the time they reached the bottom of the hill the Faceless had already climbed to the top.

Emily activated her 'Dark Vision' so she could make a quick, informed decision the amount of time that she had. Looking to her right, she saw that Ryoma had taken care of the three Faceless that had been residing in the middle of the terrain and that the princess on the Pegasus—whatever her name was—had finished off one of her attackers.

This good news was punctuated by the sound of terrified screaming, for the injured princess must have seen the Faceless that had just begun climbing down the hill towards her. The dark-haired princess saw the Pegasus rider turn her head, but that cost her steed an injury that almost knocked it out of the air.

Without a moment's hesitation, Emily raised her hand and began teleporting up the mountain; leaving the Hoshidan officers behind. The spell's range was short, but it only took three castings to get Emily to the top of the hill. She almost lost her footing as she leapt over the peak, managing to stay stable by plunging her sword-free hand into the snow behind her. Glancing down, she saw the Faceless drop from a stone ridge and land a few feet away from the injured princess. She yelped and whimpered as she tried to back away, but tripped due to her strained ankle.

Having spent her limited mana, and with moments to act, Emily did the first thing she could think of. She tightened the grip on her weapon, bent her knees and jumped off the side of the mountain. As she fell, the wind blowing back her hood, she pointed her sword downwards towards her target that she was approaching at blinding speed. The princess, even though her lungs couldn't absorb the rushing air, roared at the top of her voice as she plummeted towards the ground.

The Faceless didn't look up, for it was raising an arm to strike the terrified princess; who was so scared that she couldn't notice that a screaming, coat wearing warrior was falling out of the sky. The monster didn't' unleash the blow that would have ended her life, as a sword pierced the top of its skull; and holding its handle was Emily.

Though her weapon managed to pierce the Faceless so deep that only the handle was sticking out, it did not stop her from falling gently. In fact, she was forced to let go of the weapon when she collided with the creature; the sound of her knee bone snapping that was accompanied by yells of pain as she fell to ground. Her head didn't strike a stray rock, that punishment was meant for her flailing arm that was already sore from being torn away from the sword.

The winded, injured fighter had slightly lost her vision, but she could still the body of the slain monster and that it was slowly falling on top of her. She couldn't even let out a swear word, just a gargled noise of agony as the large mass crushed her broken leg, her bruised arm and now just her aching body as a whole. It was lucky for the Nohrian(?) that the monster dissipated into nothingness, but now she lay defenceless in the snow and the sun chose this time to come and blind her.

The dark-haired princess let out a low moan as she started to feel the cold, unable to move a muscle. The sun's rays were soon blocked by a person, the injured princess who had limped to her now paralysed saviour.

Emily recalled the words Ryoma used to describe his sisters, the first part being that they both had red hair. Though the one named Sakura, which Emily guessed was the one standing over her, had a lighter shade of red, mid-long hair and a white hair band that had flower-pins holding it in place. The back of her hair was tied back with a red and white ribbon that matched the Shrine Maiden robes she wore. The only other obvious colour was the blue ribbon that was tied around her waist and her hazel eyes that were staring down at Emily.

"A-are you alright?" Her voice was light, shaky, and racked by nervousness.

Though the question was clearly stupid, the wounded princess resisted the urge to be snarky. She tried to give a simple 'no', but with how battered her body was she couldn't enunciate well enough for her words to sound clear coming from her covered mouth. She waited for the princess to catch on and heal her; use the stave/staff/whatever the fuck you want to call it, that she had in her hand. But that didn't happen, as she there to nerve stricken to do anything.

Now annoyed, she gritted her teeth and used her least injured arm to reach up and pull her bandana down. "Yeah…I'm totally fine…" She coughed, wincing in pain as she did so. "I don't need…any healing at all…"

The princess took a step back, clutching her staff close to the chest. She obviously knew that this stranger needed help, but it was a stranger with a Nohrian accent. A stranger that did save her life…or had she just missed? Emily soon realised this, but the strength she had used to dispense sarcasm was gone. Unviable to cite Ryoma, Kaze or Rinkah as a friend, thus proving that she was on Sakura's side. For her blood was trickling out onto the snow, and with it her ability to speak.

Sakura, while still looking conflicted and worried, raised her staff. A circle of symbols suddenly surrounded the Hoshidan, white and red imagery that spun around the magical staff. The blood that stained the snow dribbled back into the wounded princess, who's first use of her new strength was to cry in pain. Though the rest of her body's injuries were gently being fixed, her broken leg felt like hot fire as the bones began to move inside her skin.

"S-stay still," reassured the Hoshidan princess as the symbols around the staff vanished. "I need to cast the healing magic a few more times to fix bone injuries. I-I'm sorry its hurts, b-but there's no other way."

Emily could only reply verbally with more groans, but she placed a knuckle into her mouth to stop herself from biting her own tongue; showing that she had heard the healer. For the next few minutes, she was in the worst pain she had ever felt in her life, even when she once burned herself at a forge. But after her bones were done mending, she felt as if she had just woken up after a long, rejuvenating nap. Slowly, she raised herself out of the snow on legs that felt firm and strong.

"Wow…" she muttered as she examined the healers' work. "Nice work. You saved my life, after I just saved yours…" Emily noticed that the princess was still slightly worried, so she gave one of her usual smile as she said: "Don't worry, I'm here to help. Your brother, Ryoma, needed help to save you and your sister and I volunteered."

Even though Sakura was slightly put off by the stranger's unintentionally mischievous smile, the sound of her brother's name made her face light up. "You are? Oh, thank goodness—ow!" In her momentary excitement, she forgot that she had twisted her ankle.

"Hold on," said the dark-haired princess, softly. Having experience with her maid, she gently bent down and scooped up the red head; carrying her bridal style. Sakura was surprised by this, but didn't squirm, and allowed the stranger to continue while she blushed bright red. "Don't worry, I'll carry you until we find a healer or someone with a Vulnerary."

"T-thank you…" she said sheepishly; as she allowed her staff to vanish away to where it was summoned from. "B-but there might be more Faceless out there…"

"Nah," interrupted Emily as she trogged through the snow. "I think they're all dead by this point. Your sister and brother must have finished them off…"

Just as she said this, a white Pegasus landed right in front of the coated royal and its rider was brandishing a naginata –a Hoshidan spear—at her throat.

"Whoa, whoa! I'm on your side! Your side!"

"Hinoka! She's telling the truth!" Piped up the Shrine Maiden, as she wrapped her arms around her carrier like she was shielding her.

With that testimonial, Hinoka lowered her weapon. Unlike her sister, her read hair was richly darker by compassion. She wore no accessories and her mess of hair looked constantly windswept. She had red eyes there were set in a face that was fair for a maiden, but it was plagued with a seriousness found in a trained solider. She had a high, white collar that protected her neck and the white scarf she wore. Her armour was very light, the only obvious metal bits being pearl and white shoulder pads and wrist bracers that were designed to glance off arrows.

Hinoka dropped off her Pegasus slowly, her naginata placed in a holder on her saddle, and rushed over to Emily. "Is she hurt?" She asked; her voice slightly husky and course.

"Just a sprained ankle," explained Emily. "She just needs a Vulnerary or some kind of healing potion, then she can walk again."

"I've got a healing Concoction," she responded. The red-head, after reaching the side of her sister, pulled out a vial and fed it to her little sister. Emily waited for a bit before letting Sakura down. When her feet touched the snow-covered floor, she didn't wince in pain, and went straight for her older sister for a hug; crying and mumbling about her near-death experience. "There, there, Sakura. Everything will be alright."

"I'm so sorry," spluttered the Shrine Maiden. "I-I was just so scared…" She turned around to look at her saviour. "…T-thank you, for saving me…"

Emily shrugged. "Don't sweat it. Just glad that I was of some help." She looked towards the opening of the valley, that three of them were standing near, as she remembered the officers she had left behind. "Sorry, but I need to check up on some friends that I left behind. Your brother should be on his way…" She began to move to the valley's exit. "…So tell him that I'll be back with Kaze and Rinkah, okay?"

"Hey, wait a second!"

The coated royal stopped, just as she was about to go around the Pegasus.

Hinoka, who had dropped her stern look, smiled at the dark-haired princess as she said: "Thank you, for saving my sister. But before you get your friends, can I ask you your name?"

"Sure. The name's Emily."

She did not notice the expression of recognition that struck the two princesses' faces, for she quickly carried on her way. She didn't walk far from the entrance of the valley before she met up with three familiar faces.

"Emily?! Kaze and Rinkah told me you gave chase to a Faceless that had entered the valley! Is Sakura alright, is she hurt?!"

"Easy there, Lobster Lord." Casually replied the dark-haired princess. "Both your sisters are safe and sound." She paused for a moment as she used her Dark Vision to scan the landscape once more. "And you managed to take care of most of the Faceless. Well done."

The look of strife on Ryoma's face was wiped away in place of a calm smile. He breathed deeply as he sheathed his magical katana away, allowing Rinkah to walk up to Emily. "Are you hurt?" Was what she asked, without a single trace of anger or resentment in her voice. "We thought we heard you screaming when you went over the hill."

"I was screaming," explained the royal; the fresh memory of the incident still clear in her mind. "I jumped off so I could stab the Faceless in the head."

"You what!?" Reacted the tanned woman. "What possessed you to do something so stupid?"

"I had no more manna left to cast a spell and if I didn't do that, Sakura would be lying in the snow with her head squashed in right about now. Yes, I did break my leg, strain my sword arm and got crushed when the Faceless fell on me…" The royal laughed nervously, as the Oni Savage's face grew more disapproving and angry as she listed each of her injuries. "…But I'm still standing, Sakura is alive and no one got hurt…except for me."

There was an awkward silence as Rinkah stared at the Nohrian(?), measuring her up and processing all she had done up to this point. Finally, she began to chuckle as she slapped Emily on the back. "You really are a naïve fool."

The princess didn't have time to respond to that as Kaze chimed in, smiling pleasantly like usual. "In any case, we have accomplished our mission. The princesses are safe…in fact, here they are."

Emily followed the ninja's pointing finger and, indeed, the two red heads were walking out of the valley to join them. The dark-haired royal looked at Ryoma and joined his side, waving at the two approaching women as she did so. "See?" she said in a jovial tone. "Your sisters are all safe and sound."

"Yes," he replied. "They **all** are."

Without warning, Emily soon found a pair of arms wrap around her; embraced by a sobbing woman that she didn't know for the second time today. The grip was very tight and the tears flowed freely, as Hinoka sobbed: "Finally…after all these years…I…I've missed you so much. I-I'm…I'm sorry!" The Pegasus rider fully broken down in the arms of her sister…her supposed sister.

The dark-haired princess could do nothing but look at the High Prince, who was smiling once more at another one-sided hug. "Hinoka was so attached to you when you were little, Emily." After saying those words, his face darkened slightly. "When you were taken from us, she cried for months. One day she stopped crying and picked up the naginata. She vowed to bring you back to us someday. And now…" He put a hand on her shoulder, his face now brighter than the sun as he smiled down. "…here you are."

If her first bone healing was the most painful memory she had received today, then this was the most awkward moment of her entire life. It wasn't because she thought they were lying…and if they where they were very good liars. For it was the sincerity of these people, of how glad they were to see her in their lives, against the plain truth that she did not remember them in the slightest that caused such discomfort in the Nohrian (?).

She waited for Hinoka's tears to dry before she moved a muscle; her first action being a ginger pat on the head. The rider released the dark-haired royal, her face blushing so red that she resembled a tomato. "I'm sorry, Emily." She spluttered as she wiped the tears of her face. "I'm not usually this emotional. But I'm just so happy to have you back." The dark redhead did not provide any evidence of being less emotional when she punched the air and whooped. "Take that, Nohrian scumbags! We win, you lose!"

Those last words bugged Emily deeply, if not on her own behalf but because she had just insulted her siblings. And yes, Elise, Leo, Camila and Xander were her real siblings; no matter what these strangers said.

She managed to hide this annoyance as the little redhead, Sakura, slowly approached her. "Y-you're really Emily?" She asked, her face flushed and her eyes misty.

Unfortunately for her, the dark-haired princess had had enough hugs for one day. She raised a hand and Sakura walked straight into her palm, keeping the little redhead at an arm's length. "Sorry, but I've had enough people soak my coat today." She turned to the High Prince. "So, I've helped save your sisters. Let's head back, tell the villagers we've past that the danger has passed and head to the castle so I can get comfy in my cell tonight."

She didn't wait for a reply from anyone as she turned on her heels and began the long walk back to the caravan. The princess paid no attention to the voices that called to her as she trogged through the snow, having to raise her hood again for the sun had returned to ruin her day. She half expected Ryoma or Rinkah to chase after her and demand an explanation for her attitude. But she crossed the snowy landscape with no hounds at her heels, ducking around trees that she had run past with such further to save two people, not her family. Her real family was back in Nohr, probably sad and angry that she was now in the hands of their enemies…except for her…father. Her skin crawled as she associated that word with Garon, for he would just be angry that his attempt to kill her had failed.

For that reason, as Emily walked past the hamlet and looked towards the west, the princess felt no urge to escape from her Hoshidan…friends?

A chill suddenly breached her skin, a distinct chill that she remembered. The dark-haired royal turned to spy the same shrine maiden that had been with Rinkah and had drove the caravan to the snowy hills. She was flanked by two samurai, who could have been the one she had spared at Krakenburg, and they were approaching her with their swords raised.

She placed her hands on top of her head, saying: "I'm not trying to escape. I just went ahead of the others; I'm not hostile." They didn't lower their weapons, so she kept her hands up as she slowly approached them. "Sakura and Hinoka are safe. There were no casualties, so we're heading back."

The Shrine Maiden looked carefully at the princess' face, trying to gauge is she was lying or not, before deciding that she was telling the truth. "Okay," she said in a measured, business like tone. "But until the Prince returns, we will guard you and make sure you don't leave the caravan. I apologise, Princess Emily, but we can't take any chances."

"I understand," replied the royal. She followed the three Hoshidan troops back to the caravan and found a place near the front to sit; while the samurai guarded the back exit and the shrine maiden, who didn't think that the princess would try to escape, readied herself onto the horse.

Not wanting an awkward silence, Emily decided to ask a question she had been meaning to ask. "So, where do these Faceless things come from?"

The shrine maiden gave her a brief question look before answering. "Faceless are will-less monsters that are summoned by Nohrian mages, Lady Emily. Forgive me, but didn't you reside in Nohr? Don't you practice magic, like they do?"

Recognition sparked in the royal's eyes. "Hold on…I think my brother told me about these things. Aren't they those creatures that are so dangerous to summon that they can kill who ether summoned them?"

"Yes, Lady Emily." Confirmed the shrine maiden. "But when did you converse with Lord Takumi?"

The Princess looked puzzled for a moment. "Takumi? No, I'm talking about my little brother, Prince Leo of Nohr. He's a Dark Mage…well, technically a Dark Knight. But I remember him telling me about Faceless. He told me that they weren't being used by the army because of how hard they were to control."

"Oh…" The shrine maiden bit her lip, whilst adjusting the reins of her steed. "…Well, I don't know what to say, Lady Emily. Nohr have been sending Faceless at us, because they can't send their soldiers across the border." She promptly answered the question that was about to escape the royal's lips. "Queen Mikoto has set up a magical barrier around Hoshido. Any Nohrian, unless they are very strong willed, are robbed of their will to fight. Faceless are empty husks, so they are not effect."

"Huh…" Emily looked downwards, her thoughts absorbing this information. "I don't think Leo would lie to me about that…"

"Do you truly remember nothing about your mother and siblings." She shook her head, which was preceded by a moment of silence. "Are these Nohrian siblings of your good people?" Disregarding any small doubts, she now had, the royal nodded fervently. "Even the King?"

"Gods, no."

Those words caused the Shrine Maiden to chortle. "Well, no offense, but I now hope that time will take him quicker than intended so that this war might end. If your siblings are anything like you, peace might be closer than we could have ever hoped." Distant sounds from outside the caravan aroused the horse, which was neighing and braying at the newcomers. "Looks like the others have returned."

"Excuse me, miss…"

"Kohōto, Lady Emily."

"Okay. Kohōto, do you mind telling them that I'm asleep? I'm not really in the mood to talk to them just yet."

Before an answer could be given, the sound of Ryoma's voice caused the dark-haired royal to go limp; lolling her head like she had dozed off. "Kohōto! Is Emily with you?"

"She's in here," replied the shrine maiden; who had very short, spikey black hair. "She fell asleep some time ago, Lord Ryoma. It's best not to wake her until we have returned to Castle Shirasagi."

Emily smiled as she continued to feign sleep. She heard the wood of the caravan creak as people clambered inside and the sound of a Pegasus' wings cutting through the air from high above. Nobody disturbed her and she kept her eyes closed shut, while the black-haired shrine maiden started the journey back to the capital.

As they bounced along the snowy roads, Emily felt someone place something in her hands. Opening her eyes by a slither, she saw that someone had given her back her retractable sword; which she had completely forgotten about. Judging from the sobbing, the person was Sakura; which was confirmed when she softly whispered to the 'sleeping' princess:

"I-I'm so glad that you're with us again…"

Emily said nothing, but a weight began to weigh on her heart. And no matter how hard she tried, sleep refused to take her as she rode back to her…home.


	8. Chapter 7: Guest of Hoshido (Act 1)

**I own nothing. Fire Emblem is owned by Nintendo and Dishonoured is owned by Bethesda.**

The Empress of Gristol: (Act 1)

Chapter 7: Guest of Hoshido

"Excuse me!"

Emily's eyes jolted open; taken aback by the sudden voice that came from behind her. She glanced around before she raised herself off the edge of the dock she had been sitting on; singing her dreary sea shanty. The dark-haired princess managed to get a proper look at the newcomer. She had long, very long, sky blue hair that had to be braided in several places in order to be tamed. She wore a white headdress, with gold and blue trimmings, that covered the back of her head. This was matched by her white dress that had feathered trimmings, giving her the look of a swan. The dress was covered in blue ribbons, similar to Sakura's, and a silver pendant—with a blue jewel set insides of it—hung around her neck.

The stranger's yellow, piercing eyes were fixed on Emily. To the point where she bowed just to escape her intrusive gaze, nervously muttering: "Sorry about that." Upon straightening up, she looked over her shoulder to look at the setting sun; realizing that she must have been singing for a while and that this newcomer had come to tell her to stop. For that reason, she bowed once more. "Really, I'm sorry. I thought I was out here alone."

As the dark-haired princess began to wonder if she should bow again, for Hoshidans took apologizing very seriously…apparently. But the newcomer gave a soft smile. "It's all right. I was coming out here to sing as well. And please, there is no need to bow."

The Hoshidan(?) princess sighed in relief. "Thanks. I still haven't gotten this Hoshidan manners lark." She extended her hand to the newcomer. "My name is Emily. Nice to meet you…"

"Azura," replied the blue-haired lady; who shook the gloved hand before her. "I take it you're Sakura's long lost sister."

"Apparently that is the case," shrugged the Nohrian(?). "To be honest, I don't really believe that story. I don't remember any of this…"

"That is a shame." Said Azura, who's voice conveyed her disappointment more than her rigid face. "I've seen how desperately your siblings wanted you back over the years. But I understand if this is all foreign to you."

The dark-haired princess gave a questioning look to the newcomer. "I'm sorry, but who exactly are you? You say you know the Hoshidan royal family, but your accent is clearly Nohrian."

The newcomer's face seemed to darken slightly, as if a sea fog had drifted across her face. "That is because I was once a Nohrian Princess. After you were taken by Nohr, Hoshido desperately tried to get you back. Though they failed many times, they managed to take me since I wasn't as heavily guarded."

The memory that had plagued Emily for the past three years, the day the masked man attacked, flitted through her mind to a certain point. "Oh, wait! I remember Camila mentioning about a sibling being stolen."

"That was me," confirmed Azura. "I suppose we've both been hostages for most of our lives…"

"I wouldn't go that far…" Replied the dark-haired princess, tentatively. "I mean…even if I really was taken from Hoshido, my time in Nohr wasn't exactly torture. I'd rather be back there than in this place, that's for damn sure."

The blue-haired princess looked at Emily, with an incredulous look in her eyes. "I'm sorry, but I just can't believe that. How could you possibly say that Nohr is a better place to be than Hoshido? That land is a cruel, twisted wasteland filled with horrible people—"

"Hey! Nohr is not a wasteland; only the parts near the Bottomless Canyon look like that. Sure, it's not the prettiest looking landscape, but it looks a lot better than this." She made a gesture to the surrounding greenery.

"No," curtly replied Azura. "Just no. If we were currently in Nohr, this would be a rocky swamp that had the colors of a snake being drained of its poison. I mean, I can't see how you could possibly ever think that. Just the fact that here, in Hoshido, you can see the glory of the sun instead of just catching a glimpse at random intervals of the day."

"Well maybe I want the sun to keep its glory to itself," testily replied Emily. "And besides, what you just described sounds much more appealing to me than this…blandness. Another thing; isn't it a bit immature to say that everyone in a country is a horrible person? Especially the country where your real family resides?"

The blue-haired princess' face did not flush red, but you could tell that she was getting angry by how her eyes were narrowing. "As far as I am concerned, Hoshido is my home. Maybe not everyone in Nohr is a bad person, but most of the people I knew defiantly were. For crying out loud, it says what kind of people they are if they let Garon rule them—"

"How the hell is that fair! They don't choose who rules them and it's not their fault that their King lost his marbles! Would you start demonizing every sod in Hoshido if Queen Mikoto turned out to be a crazy, manipulating warmonger by next week?"

"How can you say that about your own mother!?"

The dark-haired princess had to take a step back, for the aura that Azura was giving off was as sharp as arrows. "Hey, hey! I was just being hyperbolic. No need to—"

"She's been in such pain and distress for all this time, and here you are; whining that the scenery doesn't look like a vision of hell itself!"

"For fucks sake, lady, take a chill pill—"

"I hope for her sake that she doesn't hear you comparing her to Garon! How can you be so candied and uncaring about your own mother?"

"Azura, I was just making a point that you—"

"You, her own daughter, dragging her name through the—"

"SHE'S NOT MY FUCKING MOTHER!"

It was Azura's turn to take a step back, for Emily's face was burning with anger and her fists were clenched; her mark glowing yellow as the sound of screaming cut through the air. The furious princess took a step forward, her boots smacking the dock with the force of a hammer, and the blue-haired princess gasped. But at the sight of the horror that was on Azura's face, Emily's anger dissipated. The mark stopped glowing, the screaming stopped and her hands were now holding her head like it was about to fall apart.

"I'm…I'm sorry." Mumbled the Nohrian/Hoshidan or whatever she was. "I…I just can't accept it. I can't accept any of this…"

Azura, bravely, stepped forward and put a comforting hand on Emily's shoulder; which she didn't shrug off. "No, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have gotten indignant. It's just that Mikoto, despite my heritage, has treated me like her own daughter for all this time. And my time in Nohr wasn't…" Her face darkened again. "…pleasant. But your right, it is childish of me to write off every Nohrian soul as evil."

The dark-haired princess sighed deeply. "It's just…they all shower me with love and affection. But I have no memory of any of them, no matter how hard they try. Even when Mikoto…" She trailed off. The princess then pushed Azura's hand off her shoulder, turned around and sat back down on the edge of the dock.

Not deterred by this, the white-dressed lady joined the troubled princess side; her toes touching the surface of the lake. "Did something happen between you and Mikoto?"

Emily did not answer at first, as she stared into the water. "After we returned from saving Sakura and Hinoka…" she began in sullen tone. "…Mikoto showed me to a bedroom she said was mine. Before I was taken by Nohr. There were drawings on the grounds and she said it was of her, the late King and me…" Her memory flittered back to that moment, where she had regarded the kindergarten drawing. For as she continued to look at it, it had morphed into another childish image. One where she was holding the hands of another woman, and the hand of a masked man…

"Emily? What's wrong?"

The dark-haired princess, feeling tears escaping her eyes, wiped her face with one hand before she continued her story. "She just kept on assuring me, asking me to think it all through and to search my soul. She wants me to be part of her family…" The princess kicked the water with a black boot; not out of anger but frustration. "Anyway, I threw my coat onto the bed and just started wondering the grounds. Needed a spot so I can relax, so I could just sing…"

"You don't need to explain yourself," assured Azura; who joined in the act of kicking the water with her sandaled feet. "I do just that when I need to clear my head. Though I must say, your choice of song was quite…interesting. It sounded like a shanty, but I've never heard of it before."

"I don't remember where I heard it the first time," confessed Emily. "I find most of the shanties I sing in books from the library, but that one has always been with me. It has a morbid humor to it that I just love." She smiled, but only very lightly as tiredness began to tug at her eyelids. "Excuse me, but I should head back."

"Alright," replied Azura; as they both got to their feet. She followed the dark-haired lady as she made her way off the dock. She stopped when her companion reached the grass. "Emily…" The princess turned her head to look at the white-dressed princess. "…Even though it might be hard for you, please give your…the Hoshidan royals the chance to get to know you. If not as family, then as friends."

It took a few seconds for Emily to nod silently at Azura, before she turned on her heels and began to walk to her new resting place. As she crossed the fields, the sun having set fully, she heard a beautiful sound coming from the dock. Looking back, she could see it was the blue-haired princess; singing with an angelic voice that frankly put Emily to shame. It was perhaps slight jealousy that stopped the dark-haired royal from listening intently to Azura's song. She just continued on her way, hoping that when she falls asleep that she will wake up back in the Northern Fortress.

The morning sun shone through the wooden framed windows, directly into Emily's eyes as she lay in her red futon. The rays kept on poking at her eyelids until she pulled herself into the real world. The Princess had been having a nightmare that wasn't the typical Void horror show. She had awoken in the same futon she was really sleeping in, though the room was dark like it was nighttime. The royal had looked around, hoping to see Felicia, Jakob, Flora or any Nohrian she knew. Instead, she saw a beheaded corpse standing above her; wearing Hoshidan garb. The body then fell onto her, just as her futon became a sea of blood that was drowning her. As she spluttered and gasped, she flailed around in the hopes of grabbing something. That something was the head of the only person she had killed.

Her hands were now rubbing her face as a cold sweat took hold of her body. Usually, she could awaken from her night terrors like it was a normal dream. It wasn't just out of constant exposure, but to relieve the worry of her servants; because they would never be able to fix this problem. So she had trained herself to stay calm as she exited the world of dreams. But now that she was alone, in a stranger's home, and had taken her first life…

Emily began to fiddle with the lining of her left glove, which had been covering her marked hand whilst she'd slept. She continued to try and distract herself as she looked around the room that was apparently hers. Covering most of the floor was a rouge rug with orange petal patterns and the walls were snow white. The wood had a bronzy look to it thanks to the glimmer of the sun and the wooden entrance was a sliding door with paper (?) windows. What gave it its childish edge were the pieces of paper strewn on the floor before a set of draws. All the scribbles were colorful and had the unmistakable quality of a child just having fun with crayons.

The princess reached out to one of the drawings, throwing off the cover of her futon to reveal her near naked body; her black undergarments having served as nightwear. A smile appeared as she observered poorly drawn skulls, whales and a myriad of sea creatures. She turned over the paper and saw a curious line. From what she could decipher, there was a crudely drawn girl who was holding a strange array of objects with elongated arms. From right to left, there was a lobster, a pineapple, a tomato and finally some kind of pastry dessert. It was so bizarre, yet cute at the same time. It was like she had drawn a shopping list for someone, someone that she wanted to prove to that she could carry all these objects in her child arms.

Sufficiently distracted from her nightmare romp, she got to her feet and began to head to where she had discarded her armor the night before. As she crossed the room, a new uncomfortable feeling tickled her spine. It wasn't a cold wind that had brushed her bare skin, but a gut feeling that she was being watched. It was the same feeling she had felt many years ago, when Camilla had assigned some soldiers to spy on her after the masked man attacked. If it wasn't for the mark, she probably wouldn't have taken heed of her gut then or now.

The royal activated her 'Dark Vision' and began to look around the room. She was quick to found the perpetrator, who was hiding in the rafters above. Emily faked a great yawn whilst raising her arms and tilting her head; which fooled the intruder. She reached her armor and her coat and reached for her retractable sword. When her right hand's fingers were wrapped around the hilt, her mark glowed to slow down time.

The intruder, while her eyes had blinked, had moved from the shadows above into the floor below; her head sporting a fresh bruise. Being well trained, she quickly got to her feet before she was kicked through the sliding door. Landing on the wooden floor of the corridor, she soon felt a blade against her throat; courtesy of the dark-haired royal.

Emily looked at the intruder, who was a brown haired woman that had her right eye hidden by a long fringe that went past her shoulders. Her garb was that of a ninja, an orange scarf and a beige uniform that had wine red edges and knots. The princess quickly surmised that the Queen must have sent this solider to keep an eye on her, something that her big sister once did.

Before she retracted her blade, she sensed another presence behind her. Instinctively, she used the last of her manna to manipulate time once more. Spinning round, she recognized the second ninja; despite that all of the red in his hair had been drained away. It was Saizo, the one who had come to take her life. And his knife was slowly moving closer to her throat.

Adrenaline still pumping through her veins, she ducked under his arm and delivered an uppercut with her left hand. Time returned to normal as the redhead blundered back, dropping his knife. He quickly recovered and, yelling like a demon, lunged at the royal at great speed.

"Saizo, no!"

The female ninja, as she yelled, darted in-between the two fighters and unleashed a scissor kick that pushed them away from each other. Since she wasn't wearing armor, Emily was winded and was forced to the floor. While Saizo, though also winded, managed to keep his balance. He looked at his fellow solider with his working eye, which burned like the fires of hell. "Kagero! How could you have let her discover you! I told you I should have been the one monitoring the girl!"

Kagero sighed, bracing herself for the verbal assault that the ill-tempered ninja was about to unleash. But she was spared, as the sound of footsteps drew both their attention to a sight that made them drop to their knees. Ryoma, flanked by shrine maidens and samurai, starred at the two ninja with indignation in his eyes. "Saizo! Kagero! What is the meaning of this? Why are you attacking my sister?"

The brown-haired ninja gave her explanation in a calm, even tone. "Lord Ryoma, Saizo and I took it upon ourselves to monitor Emily. Bearing in mind what happened to her at Cheve, we thought that we could provide the same protection that we give you to her."

The High Hoshidan Prince smiled down at his retainers, which is something Xander would never be able to do. "I see that you meant well, Kagero, but I think that is only your reason for monitoring my sister." He looked at Saizo, his smile replaced by a stern look that rivaled Xander. "Saizo, she is not the enemy."

The redhead looked like he was suppressing a scoff, as if his respect for the prince trumped his anger and suspicion. "That remains to be seen, Lord Ryoma. We cannot rule out the chance that she might be a spy."

"Perhaps," replied the russet-haired man. "But I know my sister. She wouldn't like to be spied on from the shadows. That's why I assigned Kohōto to keep an eye on her, in the open." He gestured to the spiky haired shrine maiden, who was bemused by the scene before her. "You are my retainers. Whatever good intentions you may have, it is unforgivable to lie to our soldiers about the orders I decree. I will not punish you, but I never want to hear you giving orders under the pretense that they are mine."

The two ninja retainers nodded at their master. Meanwhile, Emily had recovered from being winded and was in the process of getting to her feet. Having heard everything, her mind was focused on the Prince's assumption of her preference on how she would be monitored. Despite the fact that he was right, it didn't make his use of the word sister any less annoying. She waved at Kohōto, as an idea of a slight popped into her head. "Hey! How've you been?"

The shrine maiden saw the hints of mischief in the princess' eyes. "What do you want?" She asked in a cautious manner.

"Oh, don't be like that," replied Emily in a coy tone. "I was just going to ask if you could use your stave…" The High Prince's muscles tensed as he heard that word. "…to heal our injuries."

"Sorry, but I haven't replaced my summoning seal this morning so all I have is my Silencing Festal." She summoned one to prove that fact. "I do have Vulunaries on hand and you're all welcome to a swig." Kohōto pulled them out of her pouch and gave them to the princess. The maiden continued to eye the royal with suspicion; not knowing that her trick had already been performed.

"Thank you," warmly replied Emily, as she gave the bottles of healing potion to the two ninjas. "A pity that you didn't have your stave on you. This might not be enough to stave away the bruises—"

"For the last time, it is staff!"

Everyone, barring the dark-haired royal, flinched at Ryoma's bark. Even Saizo was taken aback by the sudden snap of patience, to the point where his damaged eye was shown to the world.

But the princess was not fazed at all. In fact, she had a devilish smirk on her lips as she responded to the prince. "Lord Lobster, you don't 'staff' injuries. You stave them away; as in keeping them at bay."

"You know exactly what I mean, Emily." He snapped back, testily. He folded his arms, as his anger simmered down to irritation. "That word is to me like moist is to some people. I can't stand hearing it." Ryoma then saw something that made him raise an eye brow. The princess was still smiling like a cat who had stolen the milk, but he noticed that her eye had twitched like a needle had been pressed against her skin. He paused for a second, before deciding to find the needle via inquiry. "What? Does the word moist annoy you?"

Her answer was given by the contortions that flashed across her face. She didn't verbally respond and began to drink her Vulunary, but the russet-haired royal got an answer that caused him to smile widely. "That's unfortunate," began the royal; his words dripping with a taunting quality that you would find in children. "I have been told that Sushi will be served for breakfast. It's an assortment of moist, raw fish that is severed with rice or moist seaweed."

Each time the word was repeated, Emily's face folded in on itself to the point where it looked like she was sucking a very sour lemon. The High Prince, basking in the schadenfreude, opened his mouth to continue; but the princess shouted out: "Stave!"

Whatever witty banter Ryoma had planned was replaced with a blunt rely of, "Moist!" This started a tennis rally of noise; the ball the annoying words, the players grown adults and the spectators watched with bemusement. Even the ninja retainers were baffled by the childish behavior of their lord, for they had never seen him act this way. But who could honestly say that they saw two people shout the words moist and stave at each other?

After a few rallies, a new voice managed to interject itself between the two royals. "I'm sorry, but has Lady Sakura done something untoward with her staff?"

The mental image that was conjured from that statement was unpleasant to the siblings, who recoiled and put that visage into the deep resets of their minds. They both looked at the newcomer who said those words, and Ryoma bit his lip once he realized who it was.

The newcomer was male and had big, brown spiky hair that looked like it was the wings of a bird. He wore a black and white head band that had a black, pentagram stone set where his forehead should be visible. His eyes were peculiar, for they looked like they were shut but he still gave off the impression that he was staring at the both of them. Judging from his clothes and the staff he carried, he was a monk. But this holy man seemed to inspire ire from the Hoshidan soldiers. Especially Kohōto, who shot these words at her fellow clergyman: "What the fuck do you want, Azama?"

Azama seemed unfazed by the blatant unfriendliness, and in fact smiled dryly at the spiky haired lady. "Have you skipped out on meditation again, Kohōto? My, my—you truly are a poor example of a shrine maiden." In only twenty seconds of meeting him, Emily had a strong urge to twat the monk in the face. Not just because he was insulting a friend, but mainly for the condescension in his voice. In fact, the words of King Garon's speech came to mind as she examined the monk. If he was standing here and had the chance to kill only one person, she'd bet he'd strike the holy man down. For he seemed to embody what the King despised about Hoshido.

Not wanting to cause more violence, Emily decided to strike up conversation with the newcomer; before Kohōto could fire back at Azama. "So who are you supposed to be?"

"I am the retainer to your sister, Hinoka." Replied the monk; who turned his closed eyes to her whilst smirking.

"That great," hurriedly replied the royal. "So why aren't you at her side right now?"

"Why would I be at her side?"

"…Umm, you're a retainer? You're supposed to be serving your master on and off the battlefield. Doing menial tasks and the like?"

The monk let off a pompous laugh. "What do you think I am? A slave?"

"No, you're a servant. You get paid to serve my sister, which means you need to help her rather than dish out verbal insults."

Azama was now smiling at her in the same way a condescending teacher smiled at a stupid kindergartener. "Hinoka is a grown woman and doesn't need her clothes laid out for her like a child. You should follow her example, because being independent will stop moments like this where you are half-naked in public."

It took a moment for Emily to remember that she was, indeed, still in her underwear. After discovering Kagero in her room, she had forgotten about her wardrobe until this moment. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed that the other soldiers—who flanked Ryoma—were looking away from her with tinted cheeks.

Now that she was painfully aware of her exposure, she used her experience from her nightmares to hide her embarrassment. The royal tried to think of a comeback she could sling at the devious monk, but she was saved from doing so by Kohōto; in a way that really spoke to the princess' soul.

"There's no point in being cordial, Lady Emily. Just punch him already."

Emily smiled wickedly as she popped her knuckles. The monk took a few steps back, his impish confidence withering as the dark-haired lady approached him. However, Ryoma raised a hand and his voice. "Enough, Emily. We needn't continue this farce for any longer. Please, restrain yourself." The princess did as asked, though internally she was disappointed. The russet-haired prince looked down at the shrine maiden next to him. "Kohōto, Azama—let us forget this discussion of staffs and s…" He paused for a moment. "…Anyway, let us go to the shrine and meditate. Clear our minds so we can act like proper adults."

The spikey-haired shrine maiden sighed in resignation. "Very well, milord. But allow me to give Lady Emily breakfast first. I shall join you and Azama later."

"Very well." Replied the High Prince.

"Oh, if we must." Grumbled the monk; who regained his sharp tongue due to the fear of reprisal being lifted. He focused his closed eyes back on the half-naked royal. "Before we go, do you require the usage of my stave? Oh, sorry, I meant staff. I usually don't use such horrible Nohrian words."

The two royals might have finally snapped if Kohōto, as she strode up to Emily and began dragging her back into her room, hadn't said: "You are all bloody wrong. It's not a staff, it's a Festal. Meditate on that before you start proclaiming you're more enlightened." That last part was aimed at Azama, but the princess couldn't see the look on his face as the shrine maiden closed the door. The dark-haired royal shrugged off her escort and put an ear to the door, in the hopes of hearing the monk getting his comeuppance.

That didn't happen, for the only sound she heard was of their retreating footsteps. Sighing, she pulled herself away from the door and went to put on her black and white armor. Once Emily was dressed, she followed Kohōto to the dining hall of the castle. It was of a modest size and the décor was plain and simple, though it did have doors that led outside incase all of the tables where full. Speaking of the tables, they were very low to the point where you had to kneel down to sit at them. There was no one there, probably because many of the castle members were meditating along with Ryoma and Azama.

The royal found a place for herself and rested her knees on the soft matt under the table. The shrine maiden disappeared for a few minutes before returning with a tray in her hands. She placed a few sets of bowls on the table before she joined the princess on the ground.

"Usually, we eat with chopsticks instead of knives and forks," explained the shine maiden as she picked up her own wooden-utensils. "But we occasionally use spoons for soup, so I've given you one of them instead of chopsticks."

"Ta," casually thanked the princess as she looked down on her portion of food. She recognized the rice, the staple of Hoshidan cuisine, but not the brown soup that contained spring onions, asparagus and tofu. Her nose detected a strong smell of fish that was mixed with another cent that was powerful, yet alien to the foreign royal. "What's this?" She asked in a blatantly hesitant tone.

Kohōto replied after a couple of spoonsful of her own portion; smacking her lips contently as she gave the dish a name. "Miso soup. Trust me, it's really good. It makes you feel really warm inside."

Emily still looked doubtful. "But what's in it?"

"Besides the obvious toppings, I know fish stock is always a key ingredient—"

"Ooh!" Without another word, the dark-haired royal dipped her ladle into the broth and sipped the brow liquid. The taste that greeted her tongue was heavy yet exquisite and, indeed, as it went down her throat it brought a warmth that was very soothing.

The two dropped any chance for conversation as they devoured their breakfast. Emily, while liking the broth and spring onions, eat the asparagus and tofu quickly after discovering that they weren't to her taste; removing the detractors of her enjoyment so that it would end happily. After the toppings were gone, she poured in her rice on the assumption that they would soak up the soup she was enjoying. She was proved right and finished her meal with the last spoonful of brown-stained rice; contentment sparkling in her eyes as she swallowed the little delights.

"Told you it was good," remarked Kohōto as she began to stack the bowls.

"That it was," agreed Emily. "That was a nice change to what I usually have for breakfast."

"No doubt," replied the Hoshidan Shrine Maiden. "Tell me, how does a royalty of Nohr start the day?" She asked this as she set aside the bowls and fell back onto her knees; abandoning her duty for gossip.

"Well, I usually wake up and do some training before breakfast…" began the foreign royal; who so at ease it was like what happened earlier never happened. "…so I work up a big apatite. Most of the time I have porridge—oats mixed with milk—and I have berry coolie or cinnamon and brown sugar on top. That can fill you up, but not in a fulfilling way, I my opinion. So for those days, where I train, I have something more filling."

"Like what?"

"Meat, toasted bread and eggs. My favorite is kippers, but I'm fine with bacon and sausages when there are no kippers." She giggled as a pleasant memory caught her train of thought. "Sometimes, when my brother Leo visited, we would have beef stew for breakfast instead of dinner."

The black-haired Shrine Maiden raised an eye brow. "What's in a beef stew?"

"Umm…" she tried to recall the ingredients. Without meaning to, her eyes fell on the bowl of her finished Miso soup and it helped to jog her memory. "I know that it has beef stock in it! And lots of vegetables, like garlic and potatoes."

"Sounds like Miso soup to me. Doesn't sounds too heavy, besides the use of beef."

"Well…" replied the princess with a hesitant quiver. "…alcohol is also used in it. That's probably why. But Leo really likes it and has it when he can." She paused for a moment. "I wonder if he would like this? I should find the recipe for this and give it to him when I return."

"What, are you bored of us already." Said Kohōto in a jokey tone; which Emily caught before it flew over her head. The Hoshidan then stretched her arms and yawned. "Seriously, though, you know it's going to be a while before Garon kicks the bucket? I mean, your other siblings sound nice, but that guy tried to kill you. Peace is not going to happen with him on the throne."

This conversation thread had led to an undeniable truth, one that unearthed many painful memories for the princess. Blocking visions of the King and Gunter…. she changed the conversation abruptly. "So, why did you decide to be a Shrine Maiden? Not to be rude, but you don't seem religious."

"Gods no." Laughed the Hoshidan. "I mean, didn't the First Dragon use us as pawns for wars, or something? Why would I worship them? But I do value some of the principle of the religious teachings, mostly the Golden Rule."

"The Golden Rule?"

"Treat others how you would want to be treated. So being respectful and trying to help others. I agree with that. But this whole metaphysical crap about the universe…it just…" She clicked her fingers, as if trying to summon information from the depths of her mind. "There was a Nohrian Philosopher who coined a term…" she muttered in hopes of baiting the knowledge from the royal. "…He had a funny name you can't pronounce…"

"Oh!" Exclaimed Emily. "You mean Nei…Ney…That guy who coined the term Nihilism."

"Exactly! The 'don't give a shit' mentality."

Emily let out a neutral sound that you make when you think someone is oversimplifying something. "Isn't it more about the belief that existence, and everything in it, has no intrinsic meaning or value?"

"Yeah, and that is bullshit." Her voice wasn't raised, but there was still a heat to those words that wasn't directed at the royal. "The idea that there is no meaning in anything is just stupid. If there was no meaning in anything, why do we trade goods and other material items? Because we see value in them. Not everyone agrees on what is and isn't valuable. But the fact there is a discussion like that happening right now, in another part of the world, shows that there is meaning in things. Just because people don't see the value in something doesn't mean there is none." A sour look finally broke across her face as she looked at a mark that was on her Festal.

"To be honest, I think Nihilism is the worst part of Hoshidan religion. The idea of multiple planes of existence being real and those who accept that pack of lies are more enlightened than the common folk. That abstaining from comforts and even fucking basic moral values makes them superior." She looked up at Emily, keeping her bitterness in her eyes. "Do you know why Azama is Hinoka's retainer? He saved her life when she was younger. And do you want to know why?" The royal nodded, her curiosity peaked very highly. "He found the look of anger on her face, as she clung to life, charming."

"What?"

"Yeah," said the Shrine Maiden as she gripped her Festal angrily. "I overheard it one day when I passed Lady Hinoka's chambers. He didn't do it because he was a healer, someone who saves people's lives, or because it was the right thing to do; despite the fact it's his job. It's because he found value in an expression someone made as they were dying. If he didn't, I bet you anything that he would have let her die. Because remember: life has no intrinsic meaning and people are going to die anyway, so why bother saving anyone?" The anger that was now in Kohōto's face was disturbingly similar to the look that King Garon had when he explained his hatred of Hoshido. And that frightened Emily.

There were a few minutes of silence where the two said nothing; The Shrine Maiden stewing on her disgust and rage to the exclusion of her charge. Finally, her face slackened as she began to chuckle. "Sorry," she apologized. "But I didn't answer your original question."

"Huh?" The princess was taken aback by the change of tone, breaking her out of her own dive into her mind. "Oh yeah. So…why did you become a Shrine Maiden?"

"The pay is really good, I get to meet interesting people—like you, Emily—and I get to wear a cute outfit that my girlfriend really, really likes. What more can a woman ask for?"

"Huh, okay—Wait, what?!" The royal's face flushed as she processed that last part.

"Oh yeah," said Kohōto in a casual tone. "Nohr hates Gays. I forgot about that."

"N-now hold on," said Emily in the timidest manner she had displayed so far. "Only the religious hate them…and bigots. And most noble houses. Especially the Royal Family…but that's only if it interferes with inter-house marrying! And if a religious King is on the throne…" Desperate to turn this around, and get time to calm herself down, she shot this at Kohōto: "But so does Hoshido! You guys are just as conservative as us!"

"Sure, they don't like open gay nobles or royals. But if you keep the perverted parts of it out of the public eye, no one really cares. Same for straight people to. As long as nobody sees a kiss or a quickie in a place of repute, you can love whoever you want. Hell, we Hoshidans have some really dirty humor and minds. We appreciate all types of nature." She titled her head to the side and smiled. "Don't worry, I don't think you're a bigot. In fact…" Her smile somehow became lewd as her face became red to. "…I think you're just…curious."

Memories of a human Lilith came to mind, as Emily mimicked her actions as she placed her face into her hands; embarrassed beyond measure. "Y-you…" she began to fluster. "…you j-just shut up, will you?"

Kohōto did not shut up. In fact, from her sitting position, she continued to talk in suggestive tones. "You know, I saw a painting of Nohrian Maids and Butlers once. Now I didn't care about the guys, but the ladies? Ooh, those outfits were something else. The stockings, the perfect color balance and those black trimmings on the collar…mmm." The royal tried to block out these words, but a part of her stopped herself from blocking her ears…

"So…" continued the Shrine Maiden. "How many maids were in your service?"

"…Three…"

"Damn, you're a greedy minx. You royals get so much choice." She finally leaned in and get a low, whisper. "Who was your favorite?"

A furnace was what her head had become, as sweat began to secrete from her skin. "Just go to hell…" Muttered the princess, sheepishly.

Kohōto let out a small laugh. "You are just like my girl. Confidant and brash until you hear something arousing, then you just clam up and become so shy. It's hilarious." She backed away and looked at the remnants of breakfast. "Well, I'm going to have to go meditate—"

"I prefer guys, damn it!"

"…Like I was saying, I should just clear up and mediate. But I want to keep talking…" She pondered on her options. "Hey, why don't we finish our controversial dissucions by discussing magic! We've talked about Religion and Sex, let's touch on the most divisive subject imaginable."

"Sure, why not?" Shrugged the royal in relief, as she felt the heat leave her body.

"Great. Well, I don't know about Nohrian Dark Mages, but our equivalent—Diviners—wear these high cut shirts the really only covers their chest. The female ones show a lot of skin and not just their toned stomachs. It's more sexy than cute, and I swear you can see the back of their—"

"Don't push me, Kohōto!"

"Sorry, sorry," replied the grinning Shrine Maiden. "But seriously, magic is a really weird topic over here. Everyone usually fall into these camps: people who just hate every form of magic. People who have no problems with Shrine Maidens, and other religious army roles, but hate Diviners. Then people who are fine with healing magic and tolerate Diviner magic, but hate Nohrian magic."

"What about the people who are fine with all magic?" Asked the Princess.

"They don't live in Hoshido." Replied the dark-haired Hoshidan. "I swear, those are the only three types of opinions I have seen in my time living in my village and all the places I've been to with the army."

"But what exactly are Diviners? Isn't divination like soothsaying? You know, telling the future?"

"Yeah, and some Diviners dabble with that along with medicinal work. Some stupid people think the latter is magic, so they lump in Apothecaries as mages, and think divination actually works."

"It doesn't?"

Kohōto shook her head. "I certainly don't think so. That reminds me, watch out for Queen Mikoto's retainer, Orochi. She's a scam artist, pure and simple. But back to your question—Diviners are defined as people who use Scrolls."

"Scrolls?"

"Well, correct me if I'm wrong, but Nohrian magic works by writing down long and complicated words in a grimoire that they then have memorize and pronounce correctly, right?"

"Yes," nodded Emily. "But most trained mages are taught to think the words instead. Shouting them out loud grants them more power, for some reason, but that gives away the spell before its cast. Making it easier for enemies to doge or counter with their own magic."

Kohōto also nodded, as if she had just found the missing piece of the puzzle in her mind. "So that's why Diviners don't shout out 'horse' or 'rat' when they use their scrolls." The royal was puzzled by this remark, which was quickly clarified by the Shrine Maiden. "Diviners write on scrolls like Dark Mages write in grimoires. While Mages can create lightening and ice in its purest form, Diviners make animal shapes out of energy that is similar to those elements. The big difference between those two is that a Mage can be versatile with the spells he can use, while a Diviner can only use scrolls for battle."

"So…" slowly spoke Emily as she tried to make sense of the given information. "…Dark Mages can use a frost spell to attack someone but also treat a person's burn—if a healing stave isn't close by. But Diviners can only attack with scrolls, as if they can only throw chunks of ice in the shape of a rat or something."

"Basically," confirmed the Hoshidan as she scratched her head; as if simply talking about magic was making her brain hurt. "I think Diviners can create charms on paper that cast more powerful spells…but the only people who do that seem to be the Fire or Wind Tribe. And there is a reason they keep isolated."

"Because lots of Hoshidans don't like magic."

"Exactly," sighed the Shrine Maiden. "Even though the late King Sumeragi, was chummy with them nobody really wants the Wind Tribe near them. With that in mind, it's a miracle that the Fire Chief's daughter has joined our army at all while so many Hoshidans have been trying to 'persuade' them to drop magic entirely."

"Wow," said Emily in a disbelieving tone. "That is just the complete opposite to Nohr. Commoners can be in standing with nobility if they show they can be great magic users. Sure, there are people who don't like magic that much. But they usually take issue with the fringe crazies who break Mage regulations and those who act like weirdos. Or that Mages are forced to join the army, even if they don't want to."

"Yeash. That sucks."

"In a way, it does. But they get formal training and it prevents private institutes from creating their own army of mages loyal to them. That used to happen a lot before the royal family cracked down on that. And those who are really against it can avoid the law most of the time." The idea of conscription didn't look like it was sitting well with Kohōto, so the princess changed the topic slightly. "I take it you're fine with magic?"

The Shrine Maiden nodded. "Yup. In fact, I'm training to be an Onmyoji." Once more, she explained herself to the puzzled royal. "Shrine Maidens have two ways of promotion, which is the same for Monks. Shrine Maidens can become either a Priestess or an Onmyoji, while Monks can become either a Great Master or Onmyoji. Any of these roles are given to a Shrine Maiden or Monk if they prove to a Master Seal that they have the knowledge to use the weapon type required for a certain role."

"What are Master—"

"Please, Emily, don't ask!" Kohōto looked like her brain was on the verge of exploding. "Seals are really complicated to explain and it takes a long time to really understand how they work. I don't mind explaining some things, but it is the morning and I have already skipped out on most of my mediation time."

The royal, seeing the stressed veins that pulsed on her friend's forehead, decided to try and guess what the differences are. "So, forgetting about the other roles for a second, Onmyoji are just Shrine Maidens that use scrolls."

"Yes," confirmed the Shrine Maiden; who looked relieved that the subject of Seals was dropped. "Once I can operate a basic scroll, like a rat scroll, I can get the promotion."

"Any reason you chose that role instead of being a Priestess?"

"I am really shit with a bow." Said Kohōto, exasperatedly. "It's a shame, since the Priestess garb is really cute and elegant compared to the baggy robes of an Onmyoji. But I can't stand the pain of pulling back the bow's string and I'm a shit aim in general. I don't need to aim much when firing off a magical construct."

"That may be, but it takes a lot of concentration to use a scroll…or so I have been told."

The two women jumped from their seats and almost knocked over the table they had been sitting at. They looked around at where the voice of Kaze had come from, which was directly behind them. The green-haired ninja was standing straight with his arms crossed, but not in an intimidating way. He smiled a smile that was aimed at Kohōto, who had the expression seen on many repeat offenders. "Forgive me for saying so, Kohōto, but unless you focus more you might not get that promotion."

"Yeah, yeah, Kaze. I know I'm late." She let out a deep sigh before quizzing the ninja. "So how long where you listening for?"

"Quite a while, I must admit." Emily let out a moan of despair, feeling shame for the second time that day.

"Well keep what you heard to yourself." She looked at the royal with a small smile. "This guy may be a ninja, but he keeps his word."

"And I swear I won't tell anyone about your conversations." He did sound very honest, more honest than you would except from a ninja. He turned to the Shrine Maiden, who was reaching for the remnants of breakfast. "I'll clean up, Kohōto. I have already meditated and you need to get in as much as you can before your shift starts."

"Shift? What shift?"

"Lord Ryoma, before he began to meditate, decided to compromise with my brother, Saizo. You and I will both take turns monitoring Emily during different times of the day."

The Shrine Maiden looked puzzled at this. "Didn't Lord Ryoma say that Emily doesn't like being spied on?"

"Yes, but I pointed out the fact that Emily has magic that can easily pierce the shadows were ninja hides."

"That magic is why I'm assigned to her." To back up her point, she summoned the Silencing Festal that she used to restrict Emily's spells. "What's stopping her from using a spell to teleport out, or something as powerful as that."

"What's stopping her from knocking you out and then sneaking away?" The dark-haired Hoshidan didn't have a response for that. "We have fought before…" continued the ninja. "…and I confidant that I can stall her long enough until reinforcements arrive. And if she tried to disappear…"

He stopped as they both realized that they had forgotten about the princess. They turned around to where she was still standing. She was fiddling with her gloves and stretching her neck until she noticed that they were looking at her. "What? Are you guys done yet?"

"Almost," answered Kohōto with a hint of relief in her voice. She turned back to Kaze. "When do I take my shifts? I presume after Lunch and until supper, right?"

"Usually, yes. But Princess Sakura has volunteered to supervise Lady Emily after my first shift is over. After her, I will monitor her until she retires to her chambers."

"Alright," replied the Shrine Maiden; who knew not question royal requests. "So I greet her in the morning for breakfast. After that you take over until Lunch and I will stay with her until supper. Then you take the night shift to make sure she doesn't sneak out." She turned to Emily. "Is that okay with—huh?"

Where Kohōto stared, there was nothing. No hide or hair of the Princess at all. She gasped and turned to Kaze…only to discover that he was gone too. To top that off, the bowls from the table had vanished as well. The Shrine Maiden gazed at the room at large, baffled how it looked like nobody but her had spent time here. She was so taken aback by the double bill of magic tricks that she didn't notice a newcomer until she was tapped on the shoulder.

"Gah!" Cried Kohōto. "What the fuck?! Who—oh! Sorry, Lady Azura."

"It's fine, Kohōto." Assured the blue-haired royal; her stoic face void of clear emotion. "Are you skiving from mediation again?"

"No, Lady Azura. I was just with officer Kaze and Emily—I mean Lady Emily." She coughed, conscious of her 'disrespect' of the dark-haired royal. "I was just here with them, but they suddenly vanished like ghosts."

"What where you doing with them?"

"Well, I am tasked with monitoring Lady Emily. So I got her breakfast from the kitchens and we both had it in here. Kaze then appeared to tell me that the arrangement has changed and that he would monitor Lady Emily instead."

"And I bet he also reminded you to meditate again." The Shrine Maiden tried to come up with an excuse, but Azura cut her off before she could craft a story. "Sakura has told me of your behavior and that it's a running gag in the clergy circle that he constantly has to find you in the morning." The dark-haired Hoshdian could only nod and was only slightly ashamed of being told off. "Though I'm glad you aren't shirking you new job. How is Emily?"

"Well, all things considering." Said Kohōto in a relaxed tone. She then covered the events she was aware of, that Ryoma's retainers had lied to her about guarding duties. How she had to wait until morning to confirm with Ryoma. How they, along with soldiers, went to Emily's quarters and discovered that the retainers had been discovered by a half-naked Emily. She went over the verbal spat between Ryoma and Emily and how Azuma had butted in. Kohōto's explanation was punctuated by insults towards the monk that she had to apologies for. "…I volunteered to get her breakfast instead of meditating, so I took her here and after a bowl of miso soup we chatted until Kaze popped in."

To the Shrine Maiden, Azura was very hard to read. Her face barely emoted, which was the opposite to how she sang. Her attempts at talking was the half-way point between these extremes. You can guess what she was feeling from the words she used, not the tone of her voice. Which made her statements like the following very hard to decipher. "So she's well, despite all the drama and embarrassment you tell me she's faced?"

Not sure if she was angry or just being sarcastic, Kohōto shrugged. "For someone who has been recently told that her heritage is a lie, along with her supposed father trying to kill her, I'm surprised she isn't more of an emotional wreck. But she seemed pretty cheerful and is willing to talk about tons of controversial things. In fact, I enjoyed the time I spent with her. She was easy to talk to, unlike…" She trailed off, realizing she shouldn't offend another person in front of the royal. So she changed the subject. "So, Sakura told you about the shifts, right?"

"Yes," replied the princess plainly.

"Did she tell you that she took over my next shift after lunch time?"

"Did she?" This was the first time that she slightly emoted with her face, her eyes glowing faintly with curiosity. "She didn't tell me that. In fact, I only found out about the rotating shifts just now. She must have been with Ryoma when he assigned Kaze to watch Emily."

"Yeah." She said those words as an apprehensive expression dawned in her eyes. This was noticed by the princess.

"Do you have a problem with Sakura monitoring Emily, Kohōto? And please, speak freely."

"Alright," cautiously began the Shrine Maiden; trying to pick words that would not land her in trouble. "Princess Sakura…doesn't have much of a spine." As evidenced, she had instantly given up. "The one thing I know about Emily is that she has a strong personality. The kind that overwhelms people like Lady Sakura. Now, I'm don't think Emily is going to be cruel to her because of that. I just think she won't have the stones to stop her from doing what she wants."

"I see," said Azura passively. "That may happen, but she did volunteer herself of her own volition. Ryoma wouldn't try to force her to do anything, so she might have more conviction than we give her credit for."

"Perhaps." Kohōto glanced over at the door. "Well, I better go and meditate then. Goodbye, Lady Azura." She bowed and then moved towards the door. Before she left, the blue-haired princess suddenly sprung her a question.

"Does she seem Nohrian to you?"

She looked back at the royal with a puzzled look. "What is that supposed to mean?" When the royal didn't answer, but continued to stare with her yellow eyes, Kohōto tried to construct an answer. "She has a Nohrian name, which is really odd if she is supposed to be from Hoshido. But she has the same hair as the Queen…"

"I'm not talking about looks," interjected Azura in a powerful, yet subdued, voice. "I asked if she seemed Nohrian to you?"

"Well what on Earth does that mean? What is a Nohrian supposed to seem like? Do you mean how does she act? Because that still doesn't make sense. Nohrians act like we Hoshidans do. As in we don't act like a hive mind, i.e. not the same. Or are you asking if she's evil or something?"

"No, not that either."

"Well then what?"

Azura closed her eyes and shook her head. "I don't know. Something about her just doesn't make sense to me. And I can't understand what that is."

"Okaaaay…" Slowly said Kohōto as she continued to exit the room. "Well when you work that one out, let me be the first to know. Because she seems really nice to me." She gave one last bow before she exited the room, leaving Azura to ponder her thoughts.


	9. Chapter 8: Born of Hoshido? (Act 1)

**I own nothing. Fire Emblem is owned by Nintendo and Dishonoured is owned by Bethesda.**

The Empress of Gristol (Act 1)

Chapter 8: Born of Hoshido?

Princess Emily realised that she hadn't been fair in her initial assessment of Hoshido. Though she still despised the sun's near constant exposure, she realised that most of her negative feelings steamed from the trauma she had suffered after…Gunter's death. She didn't care nor want to appreciate any beauty during her journey to the capital of this foreign land. But now that the sun was hidden behind grey clouds and said royal was now perched in a withered, Nohrian like tree… it didn't look that bland.

She sighed as her eyes surveyed the surrounding lands, wondering why that word was what popped into her mind. Hoshido had much more colour than Nohr; including a healthier shade of green, a crisper white and even pink. The latter appeared in the form of petal blossoms on trees, like the two that were adjacent to her shrivelled oak. This foreign tree stuck out like a thumb amongst the lively foliage, the plant life that looked hand crafted into a beautiful sculpture. And further off into the distance she could see a snowy mountain line and, her personal favourite, the fringe of the coast that lined the village outside Castle Shirasagi.

As she continued to ponder, the Princess felt a drop of water land on her hair. Looking up, Emily realised that the grey clouds have grown darker as she sat in the tree. Knowing what that meant, she felt a surge of joy that overpowered the usual dismay people had when a cloud was about to burst overhead. Still in the mist of her quandary, she hoped that the rain would raise her opinion of Hoshido; that the watery shower would add a natural beauty to nature.

Unfortunately, as the water continued to drip, Emily realised that she hadn't been caught in a shower. She was being bothered by a drizzle, the type of spray that happens so early in the morning that it leaves no evidence or impact. And that would be fine, if the sun hadn't decided to jump from behind the clouds. Its rays battered the royal's eyes as they passed through the little specs of water. The sky became the perfect shade of bright blue as the light formed a rainbow that arched over the colourful landscape.

This did change her opinion of Hoshido. What she first considered bland was now sickly saccharin. Technically beautiful, but hollow as a commercial holiday card.

The Princess turned her vision to her marked and gloved hand. Having solved the answer to her feelings of the 'wildlife', she tried to achieve that same result with her feelings on the Hoshidan family. But that was dented by memories of her siblings in Nohr…

"Is everything all right?"

Emily didn't jump or fall of her branch when Kaze spoke those words. Even though she hadn't seen him appear on the branch below, she had felt his presence thanks to constant practice. Despite her attempts of escaping his surveillance, the ninja had caught her on the roof of the kitchen. She had to assure him that it was only a joke, and she wouldn't have tried to run from Kohōto after she had eaten breakfast. She didn't think he believed her because he asked the royal to not climb on the roof; saying that she might be considered a spy and be attacked by other ninjas.

So she stuck to the ground and explored the Castle with her limited access. The dark-haired royal wasn't a fan of the supervision, for the ninja constantly appeared in front of her to say that she wasn't allowed access. She did see the main hall and entrance, the stables and armour along with the barracks and gardens that were in the inner walls of the building. But she couldn't inspect them like she could at the Northern Fortress, for nooks and passageways were constantly being blocked by Kaze. She had wanted to venture further into the grounds, but she got fed up of being constantly blocked so she climbed up the withered tree that was near the entrance to the grounds.

With that in mind, she was sure that he had popped up to tell her to get down from her comfortable perch. So her curt reply of, "What do you want?" had a harsher edge than normal.

The green-ninja seemed to take the less than warm words well, for he responded with his usual calm and dignified tone. "I wanted to make sure you are comfortable. You've been in this tree for almost two hours now and, if I may be so bold, you don't look happy."

"I'm not, to be honest. But it has nothing to do with the tree. I'm quite comfortable here." In contrast with how she had talked to Kohōto at breakfast, her voice was flatter and was less cheery. "Is it the rain, then?"

She laughed. "This isn't rain. It's barely a drizzle, or anything really. I just have nothing to do but consolidate my thoughts." She raised a lazy finger in the direction of the expanding grounds. "Last night, I wondered to a lake near the woods. Can I go there again, or is it out of bounds?"

Kaze folded his arms and leaned against the blackened bark of the oak tree, his eyes closed and his mouth forming a sombre smile. "My brother would say so, since its near one of our biggest Forts. But Lady Azura visits there frequently, so I consider that the boundary marker of the grounds you can traverse."

"Might move over there, then." Muttered the princess, as she slowly begun to sit up.

"I wouldn't recommend that," replied the ninja as he gently shook his head. "Lady Azura is most likely there right now and she prefers to be left alone". You could hear the branches shake slightly as Emily sank back into her previous position; unleashing a loud groan. "Though I might be wrong…"

His optimism was dashed in the nicest way possible. For at that moment, a pure sound wafted over the tree tops.

 _You are the ocean's grey waves, destined to seek_

 _Life beyond the shore just out of reach_ (*1)

The two tree dwellers were taken aback by the angelic tones that carried the song's lyrics through the air. Both recognised the voice of the blue-haired royal, but only now could Emily appreciate how good Azura was at singing. It was like Hoshido in that it was technically brilliant, but had a strong character like Nohr.

 _Yet the waters ever change, flowing like time_

 _The path is yours to climb_

"Quite something, isn't she?" Asked Kaze as he listened to the exquisite sound.

"Yeah…" Said the dark-haired princess in a diplomatic tone. For after realising just how good Azura was, the jealousy that had sparked last night grew into a small flame. She knew it was childish—and that she could probably outperform Azura on the piano, without a shadow of a doubt—but Emily stopped listening to sooth the dwindling pride she had in her own voice.

To assist in this endeavour, she continued to talk in a slightly raised voice. "So, Kaze," she began, loudly. "There was something I've been meaning to ask you!"

The royal couldn't tell if the ninja had caught onto her true reason for conversation, just that he sighed due to being pulled away from the wonderful song. "And that is, Lady Emily?"

"In the garden area, what's that thing that makes the 'clunk' sound over and over again?"

Before the green-haired man could answer, another voice appeared out of nowhere.

"It's called a Sōzu, Emily."

It was a good thing she was well positioned, for that did surprise Emily greatly. In her attempts of blocking out Azura's song, she had missed the sound of Hinoka's approach; who was astride her Pegasus that hovered next to Emily's branch. The dark-haired royal sat up straight against the bark whilst the red-haired princess smiled at her.

"The Sōzu is a bamboo tube that is set up to tilt and hit a stone bowl when it fills up with water," continued the princess in a normal tone. "It's used to scare away herbivores from gardens. So no, you can't smash it, Emily."

"But it's so annoying!" Grumbled the dark-haired royal. "I'm just sitting there, thinking about things, and then 'clunk'! Then a few minutes later, another 'clunk' and then another 'clunk'…Gah!" She punched her branch with a gloved fist, as she tried to forget about the second most annoying sound she had discovered that day.

"Ryoma finds it relaxing," stated Hinoka, matter-of-factually.

"Well he's bloody wrong," retorted Emily. The red-haired princess let out a small laugh. "What's so funny?"

"Nothing," replied the rider; who's smile had sunk as the laughter left her lips.

"Alright then…" said the foreign royal, dismissively. "…If that's the case, get that horse of yours closer, please. I want to pet him."

Hinoka raised a bemused eye brow. "My horse? Really?" Her voice sounded incredulous, but she complied all the same; nudging her steed closer to the withered oak tree.

"Well…" replied the dark-haired princess as she reached out to stroke the equine's white mane. "…a Pegasus is just a horse with wings? I meant no offense by it."

"You hear that, girl," Hinoka whispered to her steed; joining her fellow royal in the pampering of the flying equine. "Are you offended, Jessa? Are you?" Her tone was not at all serious and was clearly jokey.

"Nah, she ain't offended," remarked Emily as she began to stroke around the ears; which

Jessa the Pegasus particularly enjoyed. "You're not bothered by pedantics, are you girl?" Jessa gave a contented whiny in response, meaning she had absolved the princess of her sins…well, as long as she continued to pamper her.

The two continued to pet the equine for a good amount of time before Kaze found it in his heart to interrupt. Clearing his throat, the ninja spoke calmly to the two princesses. "Since it's almost noon, I shall go and fetch Lady Sakura. It's time for her shift and I have a mission briefing to attend."

"You do that," replied Emily casually; for her only concern was the animal hovering next to her branch. She didn't see it, but there was a wide smile on Kaze's face before he disappeared into thin air.

A minute later, Hinoka looked up at the dark-haired royal with a plea in her eye. "Emily, do you mind if we move to ground? Jessa and I just finished training and I think she needs a rest." Without another word, Emily blinked out of existence. This startled the Pegasus, who was wondering why her affection had stopped, and the rider.

"Hey! Down here!"

The redhead didn't waste time looking down. Instead, she pressed her heals against a certain part of Jessa's flank. The steed instantly became focused and slowed the tempo her wings flapped. The two of them landed gracefully on the ground, where Emily was lazily sitting against the tree trunk. Hinoka dismounted gracefully and began to remove the harness of her Pegasus, including the naginata that was sheaved in a holder. After being freed from her burden, Jessa began to lay down on the ground, tucking her white wings by her side.

The redhead, who was still standing, continued to stroke the equine. Since it wasn't in distance, Emily rose to her feet—without resentment—and joined the Hoshidan; stroking the parts she couldn't have reached from the branch.

"So, Emily," began Hinoka; who suddenly began to stroke hesitantly. "I take it that you're a Dark Mage? Or at least trained to be one, am I right?"

"Nah," replied the dark-haired royal; who was having too much fun pampering the Pegasus to care about the redhead's hesitance. "I wasn't trained to be a certain role, but Xander always said that I was a Cavalier at heart…when I wasn't sneaking around like an Outlaw." She waited for a response, but it didn't come. Puzzled, Emily looked around to see that Hinoka was biting her lip. "When I say Outlaw, I don't mean an actual criminal." Explained the royal; hoping that it was that topic that was bothering her. "We just call our archers that because, historically, they were mostly hired criminals. We kept the nickname, even though most Outlaws are trained officers of the army."

The redhead nodded, though she continued to bit her lip. She stopped petting her steed as she turned to face the foreign princess. "So why do you use magic?"

Kohōto's words from earlier that morning sprung to mind and helped Emily to skip the stage of surprise. She continued to pet Jessa, but her movement was more controlled than before. "All of the Nohrian royals were tutored in all fields before we specialised. That includes magic and I just learnt a few spells that fitted my fighting style." Her tone was as controlled as her movement, deliberately measured in a neutral fashion.

Hinoka looked like she was struggling to keep back an assault of questions. She brought her hands together and formed a dignified pose; bracing herself for an argument. "Emily —"

"Listen, Hinoka," cut in Emily; who stopped stroking Jessa and was now staring down at the smaller princess. "You and I are not going to agree about anything from Nohr. I understand that I was…kidnapped…" She had refrained from saying 'apparently', which was noticed by the redhead; who continued to bit her lip harder. "…but, frankly, I don't remember that happening. Nor do I remember time spent here. So as far as I'm concerned, I'm a political hostage until King Garon dies and a peace treaty can be brokered."

Now the Hoshidan's teeth was bared as she gritted them together. "Wait, you're planning on going back?!"

"Yes," replied Emily, firmly. "And even if I do regain my memories of my childhood and decide to stay here, I'm not cutting ties with my friends and **family** in Nohr."

Hinoka cracked her knuckles as her long-lost sibling stressed on the word that she was using to describe her kidnappers. Despite the indignation that was burning inside of her, her words weren't fired from her mouth like a volcano; as she fervently grunted: "But what if peace is never found, even after Garon dies?"

"I severely doubt that," scoffed the dark-haired royal. "I know the High Prince. He's reasonable and doesn't want to keep up this pointless fighting. When he is on the throne, then there will be peace."

The redhead seemed to deflate as she gazed at her sibling. She then looked at the withered oak tree that they stood in the shadow of. "Do you really think it will be that easy?" She wasn't accusing her sister, but her tone didn't sound remotely optimistic. And despite everything that she had been through, Emily nodded. Hinoka let out a soft laugh, just as Jesse raised her nuzzle and brushed her rider's hand. She laughed even harder as she resumed her fussing of the needy horse. "I guess I should stop calling Nohrians scum."

"I would really appreciate that," replied the dark-haired royal in relief. "But if you really can't help yourself, just do it into your pillow or something." The joke fell flatter than the grass they were standing on, but the two princesses gave a slight chuckle as they united in the task of pampering the Pegasus.

After a short while, Hinoka stopped stroking her steed so she could get a brush from the discarded satchel; though she started to converse as she fiddled with satchel. "So this Xander said something about being a Cavalier? Isn't that the name of Nohrian horse riders?"

"Yup," confirmed Emily as she moved out of the redhead's way. "I used to spend lots of time at the stables of the fortress I was kept at. I wasn't allowed to ride them outside the walls, but there was a training circuit and they could go inside the fortress so I got lots of practice. Xander and…Gunter taught me how to fight on horseback."

"So you could ride a horse into battle?" Asked the Hoshidan as she began to groom her Pegasus.

The dark-haired royal shook her head. "I can swing a sword at a passible level, but give me a spear if you want to see a comedy routine."

"That bad? Did you accidently drop it and trip the horse over? Rookie Pegasus riders sometimes have that problem." Jesse then chose to make a disgruntled noise, one which earned her a glare from her rider.

Not wanting to enquire how you could trip up a flying equine, Emily elaborated on her own failures. "No, but there were these two exercises with a quintain that I always messed up. You know what a quintain is, right? And a weapon seal?"

Hinoka finished brushing Jesse's mane before she answered. "No, I've never heard of a quintain. But a weapon seal is just like the staff seal shrine maidens have, except they can be used to swap out weapons."

"Good, that saves me from explaining that." Replied the foreign princess as she began to lean against the tree. "A quintain is a device used to train horse units to joust or to charge. The idea is to charge at a mounted shield, that's set at head height, at the right speed. You have to both strike the shield and keep a fast pace, or you're in for a world of hurt."

"Why?"

"Because when you hit the shield, it swings around. And on the other end of the beam that holds up the shield is a sandbag."

Hinoka winced and almost pulled out hair by accident, which upset Jesse greatly. "Sorry, sorry." Apologised the redhead as the Pegasus complained, loudly. After she was calmed down, the princess looked up at her sister with sympathy in her eyes. "So you get hit in the back of the head by the sandbag if you don't keep up your horse's momentum?"

"Exactly," grimaced the dark-haired royal. "And the second exercise is worse. You have to hit the shield with your lance, and then you have to switch out to your sword and backslash the sandbag before it hits you." The memory of the pain caused the back of her head to throb. "Because I couldn't get the hang of it, I focused my training on grounded swordplay and hand to hand. I can wield a lance if I have to, but I can't do it in Knight armour."

"I've seen those Nohrian Knights once," remarked the redhead as she began to comb the area behind Jesse's wings. "They're like tin statues. They move slower than syrup and swing their weapons like cripples. The complete opposite to our Spearmen, who dart and leap around like crickets." She paused as she moved to the other side of her steed and took that opportunity to change the subject. "You know, when we were children, we used to visit the stables and give all of the mounts names; even if they already had names."

"Really?" Inquired Emily in a cautious manner; mentally defending herself from whatever nostalgic angle the Hoshidan would try to spin.

"Yes," she said whilst smiling, fondly. "I used to be upset very easily when I was a child. Visiting the stables was one of the ways you used to cheer me up." Her grooming slowed down as her mind ventured back to those times. "You would always use the same names every time, before you tried to think up new ones. Like Jesse…" She stroked her steed gently. "…Grisly, Christly and Sammy."

Emily couldn't help but smile as she heard those names. "My horse's name is Samuel. And I'm pretty sure there was a Gristle and Crystal in our fold as well. Did I ever use names like Callista, Havelock or Lydia?" No words were needed, just the widening of the redhead's smile. Emily gently and subtly nodded as she tried to think of something to say. "…Oh, actually, I have a question? Did King Sumeragi actually name me Jun when he officially adopted me?"

"That he did," replied the princess; sombreness underlying her nostalgic recollections.

"I'm sorry, but that just sounds awful." Stated Emily, bluntly. She then added, without really thinking, "It sounds like gin."

"What's gin?"

The princess opened her mouth to answer the question, but nothing came to mind. In fact, she didn't know where that word even came from. Hinoka could see the cluelessness in her sister's face and laughed, softly. "Don't worry, I know what that word is."

"You do?"

"It was what you kept saying after father announced your name. You just kept pronouncing it gin instead of Jun. I think that's why he didn't bother calling you by that name, you kept getting it wrong." Still smiling, Hinoka finished off her grooming session by straitening Jesse's tail. After the brush was put away, the Pegasus rose to its feet and stretched out its wings.

The dark-haired royal stopped leaning against the withered tree and went back to stroke the now silky smooth coat of the equine. As the Pegasus received even more affection, the princess caught a familiar sound in the background. It was Azura, who was now just singing the melody of her song, which raised a sudden question. "Hey, Hinoka? So, Azura's been in Hoshido for a long time. What's she like?"

"Huh?" It took her a second to realise who Emily was talking about. "Oh! Azura! Crap!" Without another word, the redhead suddenly began to bolt in the direction of the lake; leaving the dark-haired royal alone with the white Pegasus. While the princess was stunned still by the odd display, Jesse just shook her head like this was normal behaviour for the Hoshidan.

In the time of her absence, the thought of escaping into the grounds never crossed Emily's mind. For she enjoyed the company of the princess' steed, who was definitely smarter than the average animal. When she wasn't stroking her, Emily performed various activities. Like a health check that, in theory, should be the same you do for a horse.

When she didn't find anything irregular, she picked up Hinoka's naginata and examined the differences between it and a lance. Besides a guard that lined its side, the main difference was that this Hoshidan weapon was built to last. She applied pressure on the wooden handle area that took up most of the weapon and it resisted it well. The foreign princess then examined the blade that was set at the top, which was also the complete opposite of a lance. Lances were originally designed as one use weapons, used to puncture heavy armour or kill a beast. It had a counter weight on the handle area and it had a single sharp tip, perfect for skewering the enemy. After its initial creation, they were then magically reinforced to not break so you could keep using the raw power. This naginata was designed to be more defensive and, instead of stabbing, it was a slashing weapon. As much of a novice as she was, Emily wagered that naginatas were very difficult to master compared to a Nohrian lance; which were apparently very easy to use.

Feeling slightly ashamed, she put the weapon back down as Hinoka panted into view. The foreign royal waved at her and Jesse reared on its hind legs, whinnying happily. Reaching them, she calmed down her steed before addressing her sibling. "Sorry…" she panted. "… but I realised that, for all these years, I hadn't paid attention to Azura. I was so focused on training, so I could get you back from those—I mean, Nohrians." "How did she take the apology?" Asked Emily, casually.

"She told me not to worry," explained the redhead; who didn't look very happy with that answer. "She said she likes to spend time on her own, which is true, but I still feel terrible about it. She also gave me this." The Hoshidan raised her left hand and showed off a small, Pegasus statue.

"Aww, that's really cute." Cooed Emily as she examined the petit figurine. "Did Azura buy this for your birthday?"

"Yes, but for an earlier one," replied Hinoka; whilst she moved to her saddle to store her belated present. "She thought I'd find it silly while I was so obsessed with training…"

"You wanted me back that much?" To this, the Hoshidan princess' face went a deep red. This, combined with her natural hair, gave Emily the impression that the warrior before her had turned into a tomato. Without thinking, smiling softly, Emily teased; "Well, little Cherry, that's flattering and all. But now that I'm here, you should take it easy."

The colour drained from the Hoshidan's face, but not in a horror stuck fashion. It was a

shock of some kind, a shock that most people get when they are triggered by their nostalgia. She stared at the dark-haired princess with a bitter sweet smile; one formed after seeing Emily's confused reaction to what she herself had said. No conversation was born from this moment, as the redhead's eyes noted something very important.

"Sakura! There you are!"

Emily turned around just as the Shrine Maiden princess let out a small squeak, like she was a mouse that had been discovered sitting on the tablecloth. Sakura was wearing the same clothes as well as wielding the same Festal she had used to heal Emily the day before. She also looked just as nervous as before, despite the fact there was no danger here.

The dark-haired princess waved at the newcomer, which caused her to squeak again and tremble back a few steps. Emily slowly lowered her hand, realising only now how timid Princess Sakura was as she averted her frightened eyes away from the foreigner. "It's alright, Sakura," said Hinoka, comfortingly. "Emily isn't going to hurt you."

"I-I know that…" Mumbled the Shrine Maiden royal, as she continued to not give eye contact to anything but the floor.

"What, are you ill or something?"

Sakura shook her head jerkily as a little awkward sweat began to tickle from her brow; whilst continuing to mutter, "No, I'm in perfect health…"

"Is it just awkward talking to me, since I act like a Nohrian instead of how you remember me?"

"What?" She replied, her voice cracking slightly. "No! I-it's not that. I j-just…"

Before Sakura could become more upset, the warrior princess stepped in. "Sakura just gets flustered easily. She's always found it hard to talk to others because of her shyness." Said shy Shrine Maiden nodded gently; blushing as she approved of her character description.

Emily had to hide her true reaction to that news. While on the outside she just nodded passively, she was groaning on the inside. From the experience of the early years of knowing her Maids and Butler, the dark-haired princess had a great dislike for shyness. Not the one-off display or two of those emotions, but the attitude of shy and timid people. Jakob was very different from what he was like all those years ago, but Felicia still had the negatives of those kinds of people. Mainly the self-loathing that stops them accepting the good things about them and makes them very hard to talk to. Granted, Felicia has a habit for talking a mile a minute at times, but Sakura was displaying the wimpy sort of attitude that had made past Felicia so frustrating to talk to.

Despite that, Emily committed herself to being civil and decided to keep her feelings to herself. The dark-haired princess still needed to communicate with her supposed younger sister, so she threw out a simple question. "So you're going to be guarding me until dinner time, right?"

The Shrine Maiden's voice wavered as she replied, "Y-yes! Yes, I am…" From needlessly loud too deathly quiet, Sakura still kept her eyes away from Emily. This was starting to bother the marked royal and made her pine for either of her past caretakers; including the green ninja that stalked her from the shadows. Hell, screw these Hoshidans. Where was her actual little sister, Elise? Where was the ball of energy who would chatter, and play endlessly, the bright optimist who saw the best side of any twisted or dark affair?

Asking these questions ironically brought despair to the dark-haired princess. A despair that both red-heads could sense, despite great attempts to hide it from them. Hinoka put a hand on Emily's shoulder, a question ready to pop out, as a strange sound suddenly drifted in from afar. Emily didn't recognise or care about the sound, unlike the warrior princess. Due to her melancholy, she didn't pay rapt attention to the warrior's explanation to why she had mounted her Pegasus and had left. She did catch a mention of the words 'Selena', 'trap' and 'again' but that was all. Now she was alone with her watcher; a shyer, duller, and lamer little sister.

Yes, she was completely aware of her childishness. But the more she thought about her Nohrian siblings, the more she missed being with them and the more the ugly idea that, like the pretences of the mission that Garon had given her, it had all been a lie. Every precious moment, either happy or sad, might have meant nothing to the ones she considered her family. She didn't want to believe it, but thanks to all of the abrupt changes her life had gone though she couldn't help but consider that possibility. And she hated the fact that that was the case.

Her dip into brooding was interrupted by a small cough. Though the force behind the noise was very weak, it still drew Emily's attention enough to turn her head in the shy princess' direction. She was kindly surprised by a pair of hazel eyes that were aimed straight for her. Sure, it was accompanied by tons of blushing and the eyes tried to shift away, but Emily appreciated the attempt.

"I-I brought l-lunch…" she said quietly; as she held out a wooden box with a steadier hand than you'd except from her.

"Thanks!" Replied the dark-haired royal, gratefully, as she snatched the wooden box from the Shrine Maiden's hand. It was by the time she had lifted the box's lid, literally seconds later, did she realise how rude she had been. "Sorry, I shouldn't have just grabbed this food from you," said the apologetic princess.

The Shrine Maiden giggled very softly at the flustered royal. "N-no, its fine. I imagine you're very hungry, so I made these for you. I already ate, so don't feel like you need to share."

With that permission, the dark-haired royal threw off the lid without any grace. Inside where a bunch of balls that were composed of rice and were kept together by a sheet of seaweed that lined the bottom sides. The sight of food made Emily realise how hungry she was, so she grabbed the first rice ball and took a massive bite. Her taste buds were hit with the flavours of salmon and rice, a combo that delighted her no end.

Sakura kept very quiet as the dark-haired royal demolished the salmon rice balls, including the seaweed used to keep it together. She smiled and gently blushed, silently chuffed to see her cooking so appreciated. However, her eyes darted away when the final rice ball was swallowed; her shyness returning to full form.

"Thank you, Sakura," said Emily as she closed the lid of the empty lunch box; satisfaction glowing from her lips. With her returned energy, she causally offered the lunch box back to the Shrine Maiden. The red head squeaked and shuffled away, as if the dark-haired royal had brandished a hammer. It took an awkward silence for the Hoshidan to realise that her sister was simply returning a lunch box, and was in fact still holding the box outstretched with a punctured smile of annoyance.

"I-I'm sorry!" Sakura bowed, frantically, as her desperate apology blurted out.

The foreign royal tried her best to hide her exasperation. But her mood had return to its low streak she had felt almost all morning. It had taken new but familiar foods and engaging personalities to keep her manners—however small—to stay strong. Right now, no matter how nice she may be, Sakura was not the kind of person Emily wanted to be around right now.

Lowering the lunch box, the dark-haired royal walked past the anxious princess. "I'm dumping this in the kitchen," stated Emily as she walked away from Sakura and the withered Oak tree. Suddenly, a few petals from the cherry trees were blown from their branches. They tried to land on Emily's monochrome armoured shoulders, but they missed ever so slightly. The Hoshidan gazed at those petals for a moment before braving a glance at the retreating back of her sister; small tears dripping from her eyes.

" **Lost in Thought, All Alone"** watch?v=ENwFAmeWEYk


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